Road Trip Dining

Meals on a road trip are one part of the whole adventure. For me a well-written restaurant menu can resemble a tourbook, its commentary guiding the route to a memorable meal. But some meals don't require any guidance. For example, our lunches in South Bend on Willapa Bay always involve oysters. Fresh oysters, harvested-that-very-morning oysters, barbecued or barely cooked pan-fried oysters. An accompanying cup of seafood chowder is comfort food at its best, but in South Bend it's really all about the oysters.  

    

We traveled south on Hwy. 101, enjoying blue skies and sunshine along the Oregon coast. Beachfront dining choices? No question about it, a dinner in Pacific City had to feature more seafood. We couldn't resist the calamari appetizer, enjoyed along with a dark, chewy Pelican Bay ale. Our dueling forks finished that plate in record time, as we watched the last rays of the sun disappear below the horizon.

This photo of my entree doesn't do justice to the taste of the mahi mahi fish tacos. The fish was perfectly cooked, the chipotle sauce just peppy enough to register its spicy heat, and the beans surprisingly flavorful. This plate was a winner on two counts - good seafood and TexMex seasonings.

   

And this was all on Day 1 of the February road trip!

There are no recipes in this post, but I will might add some links in March. Meanwhile I'll continue to enjoy road trip dining.