Bits of Americana

This trip has reminded us that going back to an area allows us to revisit favorite places and discover new ones without fitting in the "must sees."

Breakfast - When we breakfast at a local spot we soak up a community's aura. At Cliff's Boathouse Cafe in Racine, Wisconsin we devoured the thin, crispy, and amazing potato pancakes, were mesmerized by Brewer (baseball) memorabilia, and watched each table fill up as lunch time approached. Many costumers were greeted by name, grabbed a menu, and found a seat. This is our 3rd visit to Cliff's - one can't have the potato pancakes too often.

Better than Bankers' Hours. Closed during Spring Training

Breakfast at Cliff's

We left Rochester, NY early in the morning to avoid the lines at Food at Fisher's Station. Its ambiance and hours are similar to Cliff's. I skipped the pancakes and other highly rated indulgences for soft scrambled eggs and toast. They were perfect. If lived near to a similar restaurant so I would eat there several days a week - both for the fresh, well cooked food and to just hang out.

Starbucks in Carmel, IN at 9:30 a.m.

We spent one morning in an Indianapolis Starbucks. It was large and crowded - a sort of unhome home office. Friends were visiting, people were working, jobs interviews and sales pitches were being conducted, and a knitting group met. Not as cozy as Cliff's or Fisher's Station and the diners were less focused on eating, but clearly a part of its community - a  strip mall and office complex.

 

Our neighborhood Starbucks (while the cafe is being renovated)

Food: We cannot go to Rochester without stopping in Wegmans supermarket in Pittsford, NY. Fresh produce is displayed with labels indicating when it will be ready to eat. Staff at the meat, fish, and cheese counters can suggest what to buy, tell you how to prepare it, and what wine to use. There are separate islands for take out (or eat in the grocery store) soup, salad, and hot foods. Each food is labeled with its calorie count and other nutritional information. Wegmans appears on lists of America’s best employers and it shows. Employees are friendly and helpful.

                                        Wegmans Pittsford - fresh produce section (March 2012)

                                                                    SE Asian Fruit - Expensive and hard, but no ants

In Racine we headed to O & H Danish Bakery to buy a kringle. The assortment of kringles, cakes, donuts, cookies, and bread made it impossible to buy just one kringle. I suggested that we have the kringle for tea. Sandhya and Arvind are from India and know how to serve tea – it is more than just a kringle and tea.

                                                Afternoon tea with Arvind & Sandhya - kringle is at bottom left

At Indianapolis, Indiana Winter Farmers’ Market we discovered awesome toffee. In addition to the toffee and nut candies Litterally Divine Toffees had toffee and nut crumbles. The decided that the crumbles would last longer than candy pieces that can disappear quickly. Or so I thought. Sandhya hid the crumbles from Arvind in fear that he would devour the bottle in no time. Both O & H Danish and Litterally Divine ship – I hope that I can remember when the winter holidays come around.

Gifts from the 400 block of Massachusetts Avenue (Indy): This stretch of Massachusetts Avenue near our house has several mall shops. It is hard to just drop in any one of them and browse. Global Gifts has an attractive display of fair trade items from around the world. In addition to the familiar jewelry, pottery, and baskets there were items made by women from  Calcutta from old saris. We couldn’t resist a rat shaped cheese slicer.

                                                          Rat/Cheese Slicer (born in India)

As new grandparents Mass Ave Toys drew us in.  It had toys for all ages of children at prices grandparents could afford (as opposed to prices that only grandparents can afford). Our final gift was the sign on the Old Point Tavern. Smoking in Indiana restaurants has ended, but not smoking. We were surprised by the  many clusters of smokers in front of downtown buildings.

Tracing a building's history wit a glance - chiseled over the door is "Sears, Roebuck and Company), the awnings say O'Malias, and the sign say Marshes - the current owner/occupant.