corpus christi

[suzilightning]

we will be heading for a conference in corpus (by way of west virginia, kansas and oklahoma - but don't ask). we are on our own for two dinners, one of which has to be sandwiched between two presentations. we will be staying down on the water so are kind of limited to that area that night.

i came up with some places that sounded interesting and if any of you have an opinion on them i'd appreciate hearing it. thanks

Grandview Restaurant and Bar

Tokyo Den

Wahooz Cajun Cave

Yarkarm Restaurant

Christian

Katz 21

[Jaymes]

I was just there.

We didn't eat downtown, but did eat at Snoopy's - out on the island. Thought it was very good, and fun atmosphere.

Bluebeard's was recommended, too, and I think it's downtown, but we didn't go there.

At the end of one of the downtown piers, there is a fish/bait shop called "Jane's L-Head Bait" where you can buy gulf shrimp right off the boat. To get some "where's the good eatin'?" tips on my next trip, I fully intend to go there, buy some shrimp, and chat up Jane, who has supposedly been in Corpus since Christ left Chicago.

But as far as the funky little seafood places that one hopes one will find in Corpus -- we were told that they are all over at Port Aransas ("Port A" to the locals).

There is, however, other stuff to see and do. For one thing, the Columbus ships are there, and you can go through two of them. It was a really memorable experience for me, and I'd recommend that highly. They are right downtown at the Columbus Plaza.

[suzilightning]

jaymes -

thanks for the tips. our time during the stay in corpus is pretty well planned out - field trips two days from 7am - 12:30 then papers till 5 pm, third day papers all day with a conference banquet that night.

we're hoping to get from dfw to laredo on monday, bird our way down to brownsville then up to corpus. course john wants seafood since we're near the coast - i just want 'cue - good 'cue.

[Jaymes]

Hum... "good 'cue." Are you driving? If so, you are going to be driving right through the heart of "good 'cue" country. Make that, "fabulous 'cue" country.

There are some good places in Dallas, so we can give you some tips if you're going to be there a few days.

And, if you leave Dallas early, you should be in Lockhart by lunchtime - some of the world's best 'cue, by EVERYONE'S standards.

Also, if you're driving that route, DFW to Laredo, then down to Brownsville, back up to Corpus, I and some other Texas buds can make some other memorable suggestions for your "road food." Including French food in a wonderful little "Alsatian" town along the way.

Not to mention good food in Nuevo Laredo, Progresso, the "Valley," etc.

Approximately when are you doing this?

Edited March 16, 2003 by Jaymes (log)

[suzilightning]

we are driving but want to spend most of our time birding in the valley.

we will be hitting dfw around the 23rd or 24th of this month and have to be in corpus the 26th. after the confreence is overweleave the 30th to drive north and visit beautiful hooks,tx and see if the trailer we spent our first year of marriage in is still there

any suggestions are welcome and there is this pit in texarkana i can't wait to get to. i am also under strick instructions to go to bryans near houston by one of the ladies i work with who grew up near there.

the alsatian sounds intriguing - up near new braunfels, maybe?

i also want some good mexican if i can find it.

as always - thanks for any ideas and suggestions

[Jaymes]

Aafter the conference is over we leave the 30th to drive north and visit beautiful Hooks, Tx, and see if the trailer we spent our first year of marriage in is still there

Yeah, I'm pretty sure it is. I think there's a small park surrounding it now, with benches so that other newlyweds can sit and contemplate -- thereby drawing inspiration -- and a commemorative plaque. It's very popular with wedding couples and honeymooners for photographs.

And there are food booths offering appropriately-shaped commemorative corn dogs, and shops selling souvenirs such as miniature replicas of your trailer (with a shiny-green astroturf lawn and permanently-attached Christmas lights and windows that illuminate and wheels that really turn and a tiny little screen door that really opens)*, and T-shirts that say, "Rock me in a trailer all night long" and "I got 'hooked' in Hook" and "My folks 'hooked up' in Hook and all I got was this lousy T-shirt."

Oh, and one of those Texas Historical Places medallions.

You should probably come in disguise if you don't want to be mobbed by your public.

*I think you can get a radio version of this that plays songs from your first year.

Just kidding.

They don't really have radio versions.

Edited March 17, 2003 by Jaymes (log)

[Jaymes]

we will be hitting dfw around the 23rd or 24th of this month and have to be in corpus the 26th

the alsatian sounds intriguing - up near new braunfels, maybe?

i also want some good mexican if i can find it.

Okay - been thinking about this.

Dallas is about 220 miles or so to Lockhart (take 183 South out of Austin). If you leave early enough, you should have no trouble getting to Lockhart by lunchtime. The "big three" in Lockhart are Black's, Smitty, Kreuz's. Kreuz's has long been considered one of the best in the state. But, as you may know, it recently moved to new digs. I think it's lost a great deal, at least so far as quality of the brisket goes. The last few times I've been there (most recently, a matter of days ago), it's been dry and tough and I've been greatly disappointed. And, I've heard the same thing from other folks.

If you've never been to Lockhart, Smitty's (in the old Kreuz Meat Market building) is really something to see. Absolutely remarkable atmosphere. And I think the brisket beats Kreuz's by a mile. But, for brisket, I enjoy Black's more than both of them. I just don't think it gets any better.

Castroville is called the "Little Alsace of Texas." It's a wonderful town, great restaurants, several B&B's, little shops and shoppes, and antique stores. But, it's only about 15 miles west of San Antonio, and I don't know how you can work it in with your trip. Unless you stop and get some BBQ "to go" in Lockhart (and save that for your dinner that evening), and then drive to Castroville to actually eat lunch. You can make it to Laredo fairly easily from lunch at either Castroville (there's info about it on the web) or Lockhart. My favorite food places there are the Alsatian Restaurant, in a historic old cottage (dating from the early days when Castroville was settled by the Alsace), typical of Europeans. The restaurant specializes in Alsatian and German food, with homemade noodles and red cabbage. Also good is the Haby's Alsatian Bakery - with strudels and other European-German baked goods. You probably don't want to stay the night there, but there are several charming B&Bs.

Nuevo Laredo is a big, bustling, busy border city. It is the number one port of entry for U.S. commerce into Mexico, and vice versa with trucks crossing constantly. I do go there quite often and enjoy it, so I'm not trying to scare you away, but it's dirty and can be dangerous. When I'm there, I do try to stay "on my guard." There are several good restaurants in the "tourist" areas. A block or two north (on a side street) from the main street is "El Rincon" which is legendary for cabrito. It's pretty, too - an interior patio with reflecting pools. Most of the Mexican restaurants in NL are quite good. But, it's not my favorite border town, so if you can only visit one Mexican town, I'd suggest you wait until later in your trip, and visit Progresso.

Progresso is small, clean, safe, and offers everything a visitor might want. The prices are better than other border towns, but the selection is just as good. Progresso is located just over the Mexican border, at Weslaco TX, about half-way between McAllen and Harlingen. There's a really nice (and affordable) Best Western in Weslaco where most folks stay. There's also a small hotel (Pitayo's Inn) right in Progresso. It's clean, and they have a small guarded parking lot. I usually drive over, leave my car in their parking lot, and explore the town. But, this hotel IS in a third-world country. Sometimes the air conditioning or water or whatever goes out. People that are not accustomed to staying in third-world countries would probably not like it at all. I, on the other hand, really enjoy it.

Progresso has at least four very good restaurants. Arturo's, Garcia's, La Fogata, and the restaurant in the Pitayo Inn. If you're just visiting Progresso for the day, the usual routine is to drive to Arturo's (about a 1/4 mile into Progresso on the main street, on the left-hand side) and pull into their guarded parking lot. Park and go in. Use the clean restrooms (take a peso or two to tip the attendant), order something. Shop. Come back, use the bathrooms again. Get into your car and go home.

At Arturo's, you must try the Seafood Cocktail Campechana, and the Sangria. Everything is good. At La Fogata, get the Queso Fundido, charro beans, and some sort of grilled meat. I usually have breakfast at Pitayo's, and get the chilequiles in their restaurant. Garcia's is more upscale. It's upstairs over one of the very best stores in town. I don't really like it as well as the other three.

If you're interested in information regarding Pitayo's Inn, let me know. The rates are not as good as one might hope. It's usually $50 a night. Used to be $30. But now, they're always full, so they've raised their rates. Darn capitalists.

Heading home (I gather from your post, you're going from Houston back north to DFW), I'd suggest you go through Huntsville, and sit a spell at New Zion Missionary Baptist Church & Barbeque. They're not open all the time, so you'll want to figure out what day you'll be in the area and check in advance.

Good luck. Wish you had more time. Certainly looks like you'll be driving right through Austin, and there is a small but very enthusiastic and lively cadre of Austin eGulleteers that would love to meet you.

Edited March 20, 2003 by Jaymes (log)

[suzilightning]

well, jaymes - stayed at new braunfels - german dinner at oma's. fairly good and we found some good beers. we were thinking of going to greune but by the time we made it down from near tulsa we just wanted to settle in to the hotel and get some food.

still haven't had any bbq yet since husband thinks the object is to bird as late as possible. i see another trip to the valley will be in order - probably for two months or so.

[suzilightning]

corpus christi - take-out lunches from Vietnamese Restaurant. ok -- not highly spiced which made husband quite happy. spring rolls, summer rolls, stir fried rice with chinese sausage, vegetables, eggs and shrimps, chicken with vegetables, and shrimps with vegetables, extra jasmine rice. about 20 each day with leftovers for the next day's breakfast.

the one night out we went to landry's on the water. 1/2 dozen shrimp appetizer - and no they don't get any of their seafood from the local fishermen but from a wholesaler in galveston. our waiter said the locals couldn't keep up with the demand - salad bowl, broiled platter for me, redfish with the victoria topping for john, two margaritas for him, glass of wine for me - 90 including tip and tax. ok but not remarkable.

[Jaymes]

If it's not too late - get to Snoopy's in Corpus. Really fun place and the food is good.

Also, hope you were able to stop in at Nuevo Progresso, Mexico, while you were birding in the valley.

Looking forward to hearing more about your trip.

[Tremor]

Obviously too late for suzi, but Jaymes, since you know the area, what are your thoughts about "Two Georges"? It's been recommended to me, but I wanted your opinion. (Or, by the way, anyone else's opinion.)

[Jaymes]

I don't really know Corpus all that well - just visited there a short time back, but it's not one of my regular "haunts."

I do know Progreso fairly well, though, since I am certain that in a previous life I was a border town floozy, and enjoy revisiting my past from time to time.

[Bolivar Petit Corona]

Ate at Snoopy's myself, on the island. Had fried schrimp, which was pretty good.

Wish I'd had time to try the Drum Sticks & Mahi-Mahi.