TRAVEL THERE: THE SOUTH TEXAS CHRISTMAS RAMBLE MOVES WEST TO GALVESTON
As usual, San Antonio served up a good time. I’d been to some of my old favorites and tried out some new things. The biggest disappointment was the Polar Express that blew in, cancelling the luminaries on the Riverwalk, which had been the impetus for my trip. My favorite new thing was the Blue Crab Salad at Boudros or maybe it was the new Briscoe Western Museum or perhaps… I’ll just have to face it. I love San Antonio. I haven’t even finished writing about the last trip and I’m ready to go again.
Breakfast at Cracker Barrel
Speaking of new things, been to the Cracker Barrel lately? Hubby loves it and in the past, I’ve tolerated it, because breakfast has never been my favorite meal. However, I discovered something new as we left San Antonio. For some reason Cracker Barrel doesn’t have it on their website and that’s a real shame, because I forgot what they called it. Regardless of it’s moniker, it’s an extraordinary frittata with egg, cheese, bacon and who knows what else, with blackberries on the side. I’m not a fan of omelettes. I don’t like scrambled eggs and I prefer my veggies to be cooked before they’re mixed with the eggs, but frittatas, I love! Also, since going on the South Beach Diet, I’ve permanently abandoned potatoes, so I don’t eat those egg casseroles with hash-browns, either. This new dish, that I’ve forgotten the name of, was right up my alley. For the rest of the trip I was suggesting Cracker Barrel for breakfast.
Stayed at The Beachfront Palms
We pulled into Galveston around three and found the Beachfront Palms without any trouble. We’d gotten an expedia deal on the room and it was a decent place to stay, but it was completely no frills and no thrills. They’d recently done a remodel, but only cosmetic fixes, no upgrade. The appliances really needed replacement. The pillows were thin and the bedspread was some sort of slick made-in-china excuse for fabric. We were there for only two nights and had other places to be, so we lived through it. (A little fact checking on the internet revealed that the Beachfront Palms is now a Red Roof Inn. It was an indie when we were there. Good luck with that.)
Our first order of Galveston business was to see Linda and Clay. In the days before I arrived on the scene, Linda was one of Bill’s best friends. Since then, he married me and she married Clay, forming a rather syrupy mutual appreciation society. Now, they’ve retired to Galveston and live in the penthouse of one of those high rise condos right on the seawall. I’ll go a couple of years without visiting and then walk back into their place -OMG!OMG!OMG! It’s like living on a cruise ship and having a balcony suite! You’re so high up that the highway, seawall and beach completely disappear and it seems you’re suspended above an endless sea. I try to play like it’s only jaw-dropping because I see it so infrequently, but if I lived there, I’d probably still wake up in the morning and say OMG!OMG!OMG!
Clary’s for Dinner
Our friends took us to Clary’s for dinner. I’ve got to be fair and tell you that they love it and everyone who works there treated us like we were the King and Queen of Dallas on a state visit to Her Royal Highness, the Holy Roman Empress of Galveston – but that didn’t take a lot of effort. Everyone who knows her, loves Linda. We just thought the food was mediocre. Linda and Clay say they eat there several nights a week, so maybe our mouths were just out of joint, but I’d have rather been at Gaido’s.
It’s always good to catch up with good friends, but we were there for Dicken’s on the Strand, so we returned to the Beachfront Palms and tucked the strange feeling bedspread under our chin, because Baby, it was cold down there.
jane sadek 