Cafe on the Route (Baxter Springs, KS)

The Kansas Plains burger (served plain, of course) at the Cafe on the Route in Baxter Springs, KS.  This $7 burger is served with your choice of potato, soup or salad, and a corn roll.  It was so much food, S. couldn't even finish it.  The burger was delicious!  The restaurant is located in an old, red brick building that used to house a bank.  There is a gold plaque outside that claims that said bank was once robbed by Jesse James and Cole Younger (oh, the excitement!).  It's located right near the Historic Route 66, hence the name.  Cafe on the Route was featured in a 2007 episode of The Food Network TV show, Diners Drive-Ins and Dives.

For her potato, S. chose the fried potato salad because that is something she had never heard of before.  It was surprisingly good but V. wondered what isn't good fried?

And just a few miles away from Baxter Springs is this little gem of a photo opportunity.  This is S., standing in three states at once.

Lee's Tavern (Mesquite, NV)

Lee's Tavern is next door to Lee's Discount Liquor and the restaurant also has a casino/bar.  The restaurant portion is non-smoking but the casino/bar area allows smoking.  There are doors between the two areas to maintain a smoke-free restaurant but on the day we were there, the doors were propped open.  It's hard to find a non-smoking restaurant in Mesquite, so this is as close as it gets.  The food was good and inexpensive and the people were really nice.

Painted Pony Restaurant (St. George, UT)

The Painted Pony is a restaurant in St. George that has received many stellar reviews so we decided to check it out.  And who doesn't love those pewter goblets?  They got really cold once ice water was poured into them.

A close-up of the Grilled Tenderloin Burger ($10).  It has melted bleu cheese, tomatoes (of the heirloom variety, grown in the restaurant's own garden, I might add), lettuce, pickled onions (which S. promptly picked off), and poblano aioli.  It was amazing.  Those stellar reviews are well deserved.

Regina, SK, Canada

A burger with potato chips and cole slaw.  Why can't I remember the name of this restaurant?

Willow on Wascana (Regina, SK, Canada)

The Loaded Burger ($17) with the Land Chowder.  The burger is made of Highland beef and has bleu cheese, charred mushrooms, bacon, and wilted greens.  The land chowder is their signature soup and is made with a confit of ham hock and is served with a herb-infused potato chip and fresh herb oil on the top.  Both the burger and the soup were amazing.  S. wished she could have had two servings of the soup; it was that good.

A close-up of the burger.

The restaurant is located near the marina parking lot at the lake in Wascana Centre and it is hard to find but so worth it.