A fifteen year odyssey across the backroads of America during the ultimate College Football roadtrip.

Tag: Iowa State (Page 2 of 2)

Maid Rite – Just about right…

One of the oldest franchises in the U.S., Maid Rite is a quick serve chain unique to the upper Midwest with about 70 locations scattered throughout the area. They have been dishing out their signature “loose meat” sandwiches since 1926, and this particular location in Marshalltown has been in continuous operation since 1928. Little has changed in that time, as the menu has remained blindingly simple throughout the years, consisting of little more than a single beef sandwich option, drinks and shakes.

Stepping into the Marshalltown Maid Rite is a journey to a bygone era. Stools surround a U-Shaped vinyl counter, and the service is quick and efficient. Waiting customers line up against the windows, hovering over diners, poised to pounce on abandoned seats. At least half of the business caters to takeout orders too, I quickly surmise. I witness handfuls of standing patrons yelling out orders, scurrying off moments later with grease stained white paper bags tucked beneath their arms. Wanting the full serve experience, I straddled an open stool and flagged down the counter waitress in the midst of her busy hum.

The sandwiches are simple fare, little more than spiced ground beef scooped out of some kind of giant hot box, and piled onto a soft white bun. I ordered mine with the works, which included cheese, onion, pickles and mustard. After unwrapping the greasy paper and diving in, the taste was remarkably similar to a fast food cheeseburger – which is basically what Maid Rite is. It’s not going to change your life, but it’s a timeless classic in Marshalltown and for $3.75, pretty hard to beat.

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Coffee Cup Cafe

After a five hour morning ride, I eased into the town of Sully, Iowa with an appetite for a late breakfast or early lunch, depending on the mood of the cook. Massive steel grain bins marked the end of the street, and I circled the grassy town square before parking. With a population scarcely over 900 people, pulling up to the curb with Texas plates drew a couple of raised brows from the two old timers settled into a bench out front. Donned in faded denim overalls, they chatted back and forth about the weather, one of them cradling a tiny white West Highland Terrier, oddly out of place in this otherwise quintessential Midwestern archetype.

“Are you fellas the valet”? I chided, approaching the door.

“Sure. Toss me your keys.” One of them shot back with a grin.

Returning the sarcasm, I double clicked my alarm dramatically and proceeded on into the tiny café. Originally built in 1917, the Coffe Cup Café has been a staple in Sully for nearly a century. The location as it stands now was built in 1970 after a handful of different fires and owners throughout the years, but the attention to home made classics remains.

On the recommendation of the waitress, I ordered up their staple hot beef sandwich. It arrived a few moments later, a tower of tender, slow cooked beef piled between two extra thick slices of white bread. The whole creation smothered in savory brown gravy, this was a fork only event (no knife needed).

Between the Texas plates and curious picture taking, the owner made a special trip out of the kitchen to say hello and chat for a few minutes. Despite normally eschewing dessert, during our short conversation she did a remarkable job of selling me on a slice of their home made pies. Made daily, completely from scratch, the Coffee Cup has garnered national recognition for some of their pies. With strawberries in season, and a fresh batch acquired from a few miles away, I opted for the strawberry pie. Remarkably fresh and simple, the flaky crust gave way effortlessly and the pie soon disappeared.

Unfortunately for you, they don’t mail order their pies (and yes I asked). So if you want a slice for yourself, you’ll have to make the trip to Sully on your own. And it might be worth it for the pie alone…

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Beginnings…

Still dark, the early morning air is cool with the onset of September. I creak open the door and settle into the dusty seat of my Jetta, heaving my travel pack onto the passenger side within easy reach. Rubbing the weariness from heavy eyes, I wait a few seconds before cranking the tiny diesel over. The familiar chug and rattle percolates throughout the cabin and a spin of the radio dial searches for some morning jabber for background noise.

Cup holders on the dash beckon for a steaming cup of coffee, but I only take water. I picked up a fifteen pack case from the gas station for $3.99 the night before. The flimsy plastic bottles so thin they crinkle like aluminum foil, and I’m nervous they’ll explode all over the floor. Never did understand the allure of that black liquid. As a rule, coffee drinkers make terrible road trippers. Always fussing for their next fix, you inevitably have to pull over again twenty minutes later so they can relieve the borrowed fluid.

Creeping out of the parking garage, I lope onto the highway, thick yellow lines sparkling in the half moon glow of headlamps. Ribbons of blacktop and a season full of new adventure await. Into the morning black I go.

I make my way north on Highway 61 skirting the winding edge of the Mississippi River and passing through Hannibal, Missouri a couple hours later; birthplace of Mark Twain. The orange glow of sunrise streams in through the passenger window now, the roads remain silent. I turn the radio off in deference.

Eventually, the broad valleys of Missouri give way to the soft rolling hills of Southern Iowa. Great glaciers carved these valleys into the scarred plains, the hills the remnants of sediment deposits left behind as the ice retreated North. Erratic boulders the size of Volkswagens dot the edges of fields, abandoned by the glaciers to later be wrestled out of the way by early settlers.

Today, broad swaths of corn stretch across the undulating landscape as far as the eye can see. Oceans of gold tassels sway rhythmically in the wind, flamboyant seed company signs demarcating the different plots. Pioneer. Champion. The corn is high now, with harvest a few short weeks away. The blacktop walled on both sides by endless green pickets disappearing over the next rise.


A new odyssey begins…

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