The plan was to drop our daughter off at school and hit the road by 8 am. As usual, things didn't happen that way. We didn't end up leaving the house until 9:30 and had to stop at Pep Boys for a headlight lamp. Then we headed to 495 to go north and find Rt 270. We got on 495 and it wasn't moving and we could hear sirens blaring behind us. I told my wife to get off immediately. We took back streets and through neighborhoods toward Rockville and got on 270 up there. It was a 45 minute detour, but who knows how long we would've stayed in traffic if we hadn't took an alternate route. Once we got on 270, we were moving. No traffic heading North. Southbound 270 was another story, they were backed up to Germantown.
Although it had thunder stormed throughout the early morning, by the time we set out, it was cloudy but no rain. Early on we caught glimpses of old barns and other structures on the side of the road. I even got to see one of the oldest stone hay barnes in the state of Maryland. It was build by a French plantation owner. I knew what it was, because I caught a documentary of historic barns in Maryland a few weeks ago, and it was featured. Not even an hour after getting on 270 we were headed towards Hagerstown and on Rt 70 West.
The signs for Rt 81 North came quicker then I anticipated. This meant that we were inching closer to the Mason Dixon line. It's amusing how everything in that area is named "Mason Dixon" The Mason Dixon Auto Auction, or Mason Dixon Truck Repair to name a couple. We had driven for an hour and a half from the time we left home so we stopped at the Pennsylvania Welcome Center. There wasn't anything really there. A free standing building with restrooms, vending machines, and all kinds of literature and maps to attractions in the great state of Pennsylvania. Just as we stepped out of the building to leave, a tour bus full of Octogenarians pulled into the parking lot. I saw all the pastel colors, plaids, and Velcro strapped shoes and knew it was time to go.
Once we got back on the road, I started seeing signs for Carlisle, and according to the map, next would be Chambersburg. It was getting to lunch time. Every few exits we'd see those blue restaurant, gas, and hotel signs. I saw a handful that advertised The Cracker Barrel restaurants. It so happens that a few nights ago my wife was discussing with her aunt that she had never been and would consider trying it. I knew that she didn't want the same old McDonald's, Arby's and Subway, which were the other choices. I kept pointing out Cracker Barrel, as we drove the choices dwindled down to McDonald's. Then we saw this huge billboard that read "The Lion's Den, The Largest Adult Store in PA" Exit 24, huh? Before we settled on a eatery we noticed exit 24. They weren't lying about the selection. It was well stocked. After browsing and sharing a chuckle or too at the wide array of novelty items, we headed back out.
A few signs down the road we noticed a restaurant called the Bonanza Steak House. My wife had been wanting a good steak for a few days now. She immediately decided that is were we would eat. I agreed because I had never heard of it, and you can't go wrong with steak. It was like Sizzler. They had an all you can eat buffet, and you could also order steaks and other entrees. My wife scouted the buffet, and was not compelled to eat it. I figured it couldn't be that bad so I went for it. She ordered a sirloin with a baked potato. I went for my first plate. I got mashed potatoes, carrots, brussels sprouts, macaroni and cheese and fried chicken wings. Other then the wings, the only other protein they offered was baked chicken and a "beef" stew. The wings were well seasoned and fried correctly, not greasy or dry. I enjoyed the mashed potatoes and the brussels sprouts. The carrots were stewed in butter and canned. The macaroni was made my mixing cooked macaroni with the cheapest bagged hollandaise they could find. On the second trip I tried the potatoes au'gratin and the beef stew. The potatoes were undercooked and were also prepared with the bagged sauce from the mac and cheese. The beef stew was canned. It wasn't even Dinty Moore. The beef was rubbery and scarce, the stew had no flavor. The gravy wasn't even sop worthy, because that time around, the only thing I enjoyed was the bread.
My wife's steak arrived with instruction to cut it in front of the server to make sure it was cooked to her specifications. The baked potato looked good. It was dressed with sour creme, cheese, bacon, and chives. Like the steak it was also pre-frozen. Looks like the only thing that was fresh on my wife's plate was the salad. The steak was flavorless and gray on the inside, and potato had that watery after taste you get when food had been frozen and thawed. She at least felt that she wasn't hungry anymore. After our meal we filled up the tank and continued onto Harrisburg. At the very next exit there was a sign for a Cracker Barrel, and after that a Red Robin. Damn damn damn. If we only had waited a few more yards, we would've had a better eating experience. Is Guy Fieri the only person that can find decent roadside grub?
As we headed north, I studied the map, and choose a detour that would get us over to 83 South quicker, without having to go all the way into Harrisburg. We kept enjoying the roadside views. We did notice a lot of land for sale and large newer homes in the hills. After we passed the state line back into Maryland, my wife started getting sleepy behind the wheel. She needed a "pick me up" and for her, that is candy. I noticed a sign for shopping, which also meant bathrooms. We got off on Shawan Road in Hunt Valley, MD. We drove down the main strip which led us to a shopping center. The main event at the Hunt Valley Shopping Center was a huge Wegman's. That looks like a good place to get candy. This place was ridiculously enormous. Seeing as I work for the competition, I needed to take a look around to see what they're doing right and what they lack. I work in Meat so that was my first stop. It was mediocre to say the least. They didn't have much to choose from in the fresh case. They did however have a ton of pre-packed meats, which was impressive. They also lacked in ready to cook pre-seasoned offerings. It was a very small display with very little choices. What they lacked in Meat they made up for in Seafood. I never saw so much fresh whole fish in a grocery store case. They also had another whole case with shellfish and crab legs. I was astounded by the cheese department. It was well stocked. Anything cheese or specialty related was at the reach of the hand. I assaulted the olive bar which features "bocconcini" which are small bite sized balls of fresh mozzarella. I started with a few scoops of that in my container. Followed it with Peppadew red peppers and pitted calamata olives and pitted black Spanish olives. When I met back up with my wife she had 2 bags of candy and a container full of trail mix. I showed her my scored, and told I found my kind of candy.
For the last hour of our ride we made it down to Baltimore and cut through by way of the Rt 695 "The Baltimore Beltway" to Rt 95 and on into good old Hyattsville. Overall I think we were both most satisfied with our trip. We saw a lot of neat stuff. Reminisced and even listened to some old Cd's. I think that we couldn't have made it any better.
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