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The good, the bad, and the laundry
When shopping for a cabin rental I always look for:
amenities or luxuries that I do not have at home, a
location that is close or on the water, enough beds for
the family, and a rental price around $200 - $250 per
night. Rarely do I get everything I am looking for, but
this time I was pretty confident I had made a great
decision. Since we would be visiting the Davis area I
chose Moonlight Bay Chalet located half way between
Sulphur and Davis, Ok.
 The Moonlight Bay Chalet is managed by Premier Lake
Properties and has several homes/cabins in the area. The
cabin hit all my targets, located on a large pond Tom
and I could paddle safely at night, under $250, hot tub
on the decks with a great view, conveniently located to
major attractions and down the road from Guy Sandy
access on Lake Arbuckle. It sounds great and it was not
too bad, but there were some major problems with the
cabin that simply cannot be overlooked.
The front of the cabin that faces the large pond is
glass, this offers a nice view, but makes it impossible
to keep cool. We were never comfortable during our stay,
always a little too warm. It probably would not be an
issue during the winter months, but I cannot recommend
staying there in the summer.
We also found several notes warning us of additional
charges and asking us to perform mandatory housework
(including laundering towels) before leaving promptly at
11am. The wording in these notes was a little insulting
and reflected poorly on management. All the little
things were done wrong too, the toilet paper was poor
quality, there was no soap available in the
downstairs bathroom and the track doors were a nightmare
to close. The spa had been abused, it was missing jets,
the air control did not function and it would only heat
up to a pitiful 104F. It was clean, but much more
enjoyable cold than it’s max setting of tepid.
The decks and dock were neglected and have not been
properly weatherized. It suited our needs, but it was a
little unnerving to feel the deck bow underneath your
feet, I started to wonder how safe the hot tub is up
there. The dock ladder was nailed on a loose board and
although I used it, I would advise being cautious. It
would have also been nice if management would trim the
weeds around the waters edge.
If you are looking for a luxury cabin where you can
truly relax I would not recommend staying here. If you
are looking for a quiet fall hideaway with no frills,
but close to popular attractions this may be something
to consider.
You can learn more about the Moonlight Bay Chalet and
other properties and online reservations at:
http://www.premierlakeproperty.com/moonlightbaychalet.asp
Dianne M. Jones
OklahomaRoadTrips.com
06/12 /2008 |
Cafe on the Route
 Tom and I spotted this cute little Downtown café in
Baxter Springs Kansas called Café on the Route. We
arrived straight off the river complete with sandals,
dirty baseball cap and all. This is not normally a
problem, but when I saw the waiter in dress blacks, I
felt a little underdressed. Upon entering I knew I was
about to be surprised by this little café, I walked in
expecting “The Great American Greasy Spoon”, but this
was obviously something entirely different.
Our waiter was very friendly and upbeat, he let us know
of the special for the evening which included crab legs
and shrimp scampi. The specials sounded scrumptious, but
the menu was what blew my mind! Below are just a few of
the entrees that caught my attention.
Aztec Chicken – 8oz sautéed chicken breast with
shrimp, bacon, avocados and chilies.
Slattery Chicken – 8oz chicken breast stuffed
with Swiss and corned beef served with cream sauce.
Flap Jack Ribeye – 8oz steak stuffed with onions,
mushrooms, and provolone cheese, served with concasse
sauce.
Nut-crusted catfish
They also had neat sounding sides: Skinny fries,
fried potato salad, parmesan potatoes & tobacco onions
just to name a few.
I was going to order the Aztec chicken, but I let Tom
talk me into the Spicy Avocado Pepperoni Strip which is
basically an 8oz strip served with sliced avocados and a
spicy pepperoni glaze, it was served with mixed veggies
and my choice of potato.
Tom had the Flap Jack Ribeye, my samples were nice, very
flavorful and reasonably tender. The cheese, mushrooms,
and meat went together wonderfully and although a little
splashy, the sauce gave the steak an added savory
flavor.
Although I was very impressed with the service and the
adorable downtown building, the meal put in front of me
was not as impressive. The steak had quite a bit of
gristle and was far from pleasantly tender. The avocado
was interesting, but the pepperoni glaze just did not
“do it” for me. If the steak would have been tender I
could have enjoyed the meal, but instead I left
disappointed and honestly a little sad….but not for
long!
I turns out, the next day was their spectacular Sunday
brunch and after a morning on the river (in the rain) we
were not going to miss out on that. The small café we
dined in the night before had been opened up to include
a banquet room with tables of freshly stocked hot items.
The amount of food on this buffet will rival any Sirloin
Stockade, but with a larger variety than the one in my
small town.
They offered fried chicken, potatoes (fried & mashed),
catfish that was very lightly breaded, extremely tender
BBQ brisket, salad fixings, and an assortment of
vegetables. After the meal you are given a choice of two
freshly made desserts, after eating mine and sampling
Tom’s I can confirm that they were both equally
heavenly.
I seriously believe that I caught the chef on a bad
night and I look forward to giving it another try. Next
time, I will order the Aztec chicken and the skinny
fries and encourage Tom to get the fried potato salad…I
cannot wait!
Café on the Route is located in Baxter Springs KS at
1101 Military Ave. KS.
Phone: 620-856-5646
Dianne M. Jones
Dianne@VineByDesign.com
05/31/2008
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Carrabba’s Italian Grill
Tom and I were invited to Carrabba’s Italian Grill
to sample the cuisine and experience the atmosphere of
this unique and charming restaurant chain. I had heard
that the food was good, but I was surprised at the level
of detail they had for every aspect of the meal.
Carrabba’s has an Italian Sangria that I was eager to
try; it is a classic sangria made with Korbel, fresh
fruits and their house wine, either Pinot Grigio (white)
or Montepulciano (red). I mentioned that I had never had
a white sangria before and the next thing I knew our
waiter Donny had small sample of both on my table, at
that point I knew Carrabba’s was something special!
Ultimately, I chose the red sangria and it was
wonderful, cinnamon flavors with citrus fruits and
spices were very flavorful yet not overwhelming. The
white sangria was nice, but with the complex spicy
flavors and personality of the red, it was love at first
sip.
 For
the appetizer I chose the Cozze In Bianco which was not
at all what I expected. They raise their mussels on
ropes so they are very meaty and free of grit as they
have never touched the ground. The mussels are steamed
in white wine, basil, lemon butter and Pernod (a
liqueur) and served in a large bowl for all to share.
They were incredibly fresh, light and buttery, we both
enjoyed the warm fresh bread dipped into the yummy
mixture. Tom who is normally turned off by food that in
any way resembles its living form loved the dish and
even asked if he could have the last one!
Deciding on the entrée was the hard part, there are so
many dishes that sound amazing and because the
exhibition kitchen was directly in front of me I got to
see and smell all of these wonderful things being made.
I chose the Damian named after one of the founders
Damian Mandola. The Damian is a variety of seafood
favorites, lobster ravioli, Spiedino di Mare (grilled
shrimp and scallops over pecan wood) and grilled salmon
served with Italian green beans. The first thing I
noticed was the unmistakable sweet smoky scent of the
shrimp and scallops so I had to try them first, they
were so fresh and smoky I loved every bite. The lobster
ravioli was nice, the portions were a reasonable
medallion size making it a perfect consistency
throughout; I find large raviolis are often mushy. On
top of the grilled salmon was a nice sauce with pickled
artichoke slices, it was a lovely contrast to the fish.
The salmon was perfectly portioned and grilled with
skill, crispy, slightly crunchy outside and moist on the
inside it was an example of perfection.
 Thomas
chose a Caesar salad with his Steak Marsala and smooth,
garlic mashed potato. The Caesar salad was lightly
vinegary, wonderfully crispy, cheesy and peppery it was
really a nice simple salad. Carrabba’s is known for
their marsala sauce, you can get it with pork and
chicken, but Tom chose steak because he wanted something
a little more challenging. Too often steaks are cooked
wrong or tough, but his steak was cooked to a true
medium and was tender and juicy. It was topped with
mushrooms and Marsala Sauce that gave the steak a savory
mushroom flavor throughout, I think that next time I’m
going to order that dish for myself.
The service at Carrabba’s was excellent; our waiter
Donny was friendly, knowledgeable and extremely good at
what he does. The staff is not only genuinely good
natured towards clients, but you can see how helpful and
considerate they are to each other. It definitely
exceeded my expatiations and has raised the bar on what
the Tulsa area to have to offer.
This article written about Carrabba’s located at 11021 E
71st Street Tulsa, OK 74133 /(918) 254-8888. You can
find more information on Carrabba’s website
http://www.carrabbas.com/
Dianne M. Jones
Dianne@VineByDesign.com
04/14/2008 Photos
courtesy of Carrabba's Italian Grill |
Webmaster@VineByDesign.com
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