VEGAS FOOD NERD'S TREK ACROSS AMERICA BY VEGAS FOOD NERD
It’s no secret that our country has a wide variety of foods to savor. Recently this nerd got to hit the road from Las Vegas to my home state of Michigan. We were delivering a recording console for one of our musician friends. Still, along the way, we had to eat, and for the next few columns I will document our gastronomic journey to the Midwest, and what we gnawed on while becoming serious road dogs along the way.
The first stop from Las Vegas was Rawlins, Wyoming. It’s a tiny town, but a happening one. We got there on a Saturday night, and every place that we tried to dine after miles on the road was completely packed. One spot was closed due to a funeral for a local resident. The other had an hour wait.
Finally, we found a cozy family spot called Cappy’s. Here we entered this local family spot, and its red awning welcomed us, and thankfully we could get a table to feed our weary stomachs. It’s a simply decorated place with Wyoming cowboy decorations adorning their walls. We started out with a couple of Stella’s on tap, always a good starting point. We ordered their French dip, a salad, and their mushroom swiss burger with fries. We started things off with an order of their mozzarella sticks. Reliably decadent, they were just as good as the ones you get at Denny’s. Their side salad was a basic iceberg, cucumber, tomato with ranch. The French dip was okay, nothing earth-shattering but a welcome bite after twelve hours on the road. The mushroom burger was good, but not amazing. Cappy’s isn’t going to change the culinary but who cares. It’s a family-friendly, warm neighborhood joint with a pleasant clean atmosphere and a welcoming staff. If you make it to Rawlins’ little town, you won’t be sorry that you visited.
The next stop on our journey was the hometown of Warren Buffet, Omaha, Nebraska. Located just a block or so away from our hotel was an Italian restaurant Spezia. Spezia, Italian for spice, is part of a small restaurant chain locally owned by Dave and Rick Thompson, who reside in South Dakota. The interior is sleek, with warm wooden accents. The restaurant is wildly popular with Omahans and business travelers to the city.
Upon being seated, we are treated to hot bread, and a tasty olive oil dip to swirl the warm crusty stuff in while perusing the menu. Our booth was in the atrium part of the restaurant with large windows, and high back plush seating. We ordered a bottle of Santa Margherita, Valdagie Pinot Grigio which came chilled perfectly. After sampling our wine and taking in the selections, we made our order. To start, we tried the Spezia salad served on a bed of mixed greens, topped with prosciutto, Roma tomatoes, kalamata olives, gorgonzola, topped off with a balsamic vinaigrette, a perfectly constructed start to our meal.
Our entrées arrived shortly after the salad. I ordered the beef burgundy pasta, an amazing combination of flavors with Angus beef tenderloin, cremini, and portobello mushrooms served in a burgundy cream sauce tossed with fettuccine pasta. It was an Italian take on one of my favorite dishes, beef stroganoff a creamy, savory delight.
My husband tried their roasted duck. The offering was called hunters duckling. It featured a half of duckling roasted to crispy perfection served alongside a mushroom risotto, roasted asparagus, and a balsamic orange marmalade dip to dip the meat in. It was a spectacularly executed plate. The duck skin was crispy perfection complemented by the tender, creamy risotto, and that dip well we are still dreaming about it. If you make it to Omaha, I highly suggest you try this place. It was a happy respite after a long day on the road.