[SIZE=14pt]Tampa Bay Downs and Gulfstream[/SIZE]
image by 2 Joe's JoeH, on Flickr
[SIZE=14pt]So...my little weather station that sits in my yard just north of Grand Rapids, MI tells me it is -5 (for those of you who do not have thermometers that read below 30 that’s pronounced Five Degrees BELOW Zero!!). As JoeG boards the train in southern Illinois, he is just hours ahead of an ice and snow storm bearing down on his area. Fortunately, we are getting on trains pointing south to Florida where it is 85 degrees. Our itinerary is to meet in Chicago to board the Capitol Limited #30 to Washington D.C. followed by the Silver Meteor #97 to Orlando, a couple of days in Tampa and hop on the Silver Star #91 to Hollywood. Our next train ride will be the Silver Meteor from Hollywood back to Washington D.C. and a return trip on the Cap Limited #29 to Chicago.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I board the Pere Marquette in Grand Rapids and make good time getting to Chicago. JoeG hops on the Saluki and has an equally smooth ride to our rendezvous point...the Metro Deli. This restaurant/bar is no longer associated with the Snuggery but they very wisely maintained our top priority...the $9 pitcher!! Following our attitude adjustment period we decide to not stray too far from Union Station...it is still brutally cold outside. Dylan's Tavern is only a half block away and has very good food so that satisfies our requirements. We order nachos (they do an excellent job for an Irish joint) and a tuna melt sandwich. The only drawback of this place is they don't serve pitchers but they do have buckets of beer. That's not the drawback...the bucket comes with 5 beers and that ain't divisible by 2...but 10 is!! We get back to Union Station in time to get our bags out of hock and find our roomettes on the Cap.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]We leave Chicago on time and wake up the next morning still right on schedule. That is a relief since our last ride down this route turned out to be a little more adventure than we bargained for (check out Gastronomic Adventure #9). This trip we are being pulled by good old reliable Engine #1. We arrive in WAS on time, check our bags, and head for lunch. First order of business is to check the balance on our SmarTrip cards. If you are planning a trip to Washington and intend to ride the Metro system (and we heartily suggest you use this very good light rail system) you should order a SmarTrip card. In this city that is obsessed with taxing everything they possibly can, this card will save you a $1 surcharge per ride.[/SIZE]
Number 1 by 2 Joe's JoeH, on Flickr
[SIZE=14pt]There is a Metro station downstairs in Union Station that can conveniently get you to all of the major areas of town. Today we are headed to Bobby's Burger Palace on K Street. The subway quickly gets us to within a couple of blocks of this upbeat burger joint. Bobby's features 10 very different burgers that can be made with beef, ground turkey, or chicken breast. I chose the Buffalo Style Burger--with red hot sauce, blue cheese dressing and watercress. I ordered it medium rare. It was almost mooing but it was such a good quality meat that it was very good. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]JoeG tired the Dallas Burger--the meat is spice crusted prior to cooking then topped with coleslaw, Monterey Jack, bbq sauce and pickles. There are several sauces on the table that are also excellent additions for these already tasty burgers. We both had an order of french fries with their special fry sauce. Neither of us thought to order one of the best reviewed items at this joint...the sweet potato fries. Oh well, there are 8 more burgers on the menu so I see a return trip in our future.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]On the way back toward Union Station, JoeG wants to check out a new display at the Smithsonian Portrait Museum...the Cool Americans display. It is just a couple of subway stops from lunch and practically across the street from a Metro stop. This was a very interesting presentation of a couple of hundred portraits in six rooms that represent cool people who have influenced our society in the past few decades. No politicians are represented so we figure the whole idea is off to a good start. The best part about it is that it stimulates a lot of conversation. We talked for hours about what our choices would have been that were omitted. Go see this museum if you are in town for a few hours.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Back at the station the Silver Meteor is ready for our travel to Florida. We depart right on time and pull into Orlando less than an hour late. We have tickets for a connecting bus to Tampa but decide to blow that off and catch a ride with JoeG's brother. That gives us a chance to visit and gets us a ride right to the hotel and to our evening restaurant plans. Tonight we are eating at the Columbia Restaurant. It is the oldest continually operated restaurant in Florida as well as being the oldest Spanish restaurant in the U.S. Additionally, the Columbia is situated in the Ybor City neighborhood of Tampa; This historic area was founded by cigar manufacturers and employed multi-ethnic and multi-racial workers from Spain, Cuba, and Italy. After WW II, abandonment and decay plagued this neighborhood but it is now making a nice comeback as an entertainment district...and the cigars still have a dominant presence. So, let’s talk about some really good Spanish/Cuban food.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The Columbia serves one of the top 10 salads in the country (according to them and a USA Today poll) known as the 1905 salad (named for the year this place opened). It contains all of the usual salad suspects BUT the dressing has a secret ingredient -- Worcestershire Sauce. We watched Jake, our server; make the salad at our table. Into a cruet of olive oil, garlic and some citrus he drizzles no more than 4 or 5 drops of the sauce (he said it cuts the oil just like vinegar) and it makes an amazing difference in the salad. Try it at your house! BTW, the Columbia is the largest buyer of Worcestershire Sauce in the U.S. That's a lot of salads!! Next we ordered a pitcher of Sangria de Cava, again constructed at the table. This delightful drink starts with a big pitcher of ice and some simple sugars. Then some Torres Orange Liqueur, a very generous pour of Torres Brandy, some citrus juices and topped off with a small bottle of Spanish Cava sparkling wine. This is a very happy drink!!![/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The dinner menu is extensive, ranging from Spanish and Cuban specialties to steaks. We decide the best way to get a broad range of tastes is to sample the Tapas which the three of us can share. Tapas started in Spanish bars as their idea of appetizers and they have evolved into an entire, and sometimes, sophisticated cuisine. We decide on six tapas: [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Pincho Mixta - skewers of grilled seasoned pork, chicken, chorizo (to die for) and onions. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Empanadas - spiced ground beef, garlic, tomato, onion, raisins and olives all wrapped in pastry turnovers. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Queso Fundido - a mild delicious cheese from NW Spain baked in a Rioja tomato sauce until melted and served with Cuban bread points. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Coca Langosta - flatbread brushed with sauce, topped with chorizo, tomatoes, Maine lobster meat and Manchego cheese, then baked until crisp and drizzled with Piquillo pepper aioli. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Shrimp and Crabmeat Alaschofas-baked casserole of shrimp, crabmeat, and artichoke hearts topped with grated Romano. [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt] Deviled Crab Croquettes - served with hot sauce. [/SIZE]
Tapas 1 @ Columbia Restaurant - Ybor City by 2 Joe's JoeH, on Flickr
[SIZE=14pt]We were sitting at a rather small cafe table so we started rearranging things to make way for six plates of food. Then the tapas arrived on two tall serving stands that held three plates each. My guess is that we were NOT the first folks to order six tapas at one time. Good food and a really fun evening; worth visiting when in the Tampa area.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Friday morning finds us heading to Tampa Bay Downs Race Track. Our first stop is the poker room to meet “I always rode the Southern” (Cathy). We have a great conversation about this facility, the Gathering, and other things Amtrak. There is a nice lunch area in this room so we decide to get a corned beef sandwich before buckling down to horse racing. It also gives us extra time to talk to our fellow AU member. Our sandwiches arrive and it is very tasty but the french fries steal the show. We both give the corned beef honorable mention. Cathy has a poker tournament that is starting at the same time the races commence so we say our goodbyes and wish each other luck. It is an absolutely gorgeous day so we opt to sit on a bench in the warm sunshine to watch the races. We skip the last race because Cathy's card game is over and, at lunch, she had mentioned a condo foreclosure in her neighborhood. The temptation is stuck in JoeG's brain. Why not go to Florida for a horse race and buy a condo...isn't that what everybody does? So off we go following Kathy to the condo. The jury is still out whether JoeG is going to buy the place. BTW, while we are looking at the condo wearing our shorts and t-shirt, a buddy from Grand Rapids sends me a text picture of the outside air temperature -- MINUS 21!! This Florida living is looking pretty good.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Tonight we are back in Ybor City for another great dinner. As I mentioned, Italians were among the primary settlers that moved here to work in the cigar factories so it stands to reason that, besides Spanish, there will be some good Italian restaurants in the neighborhood. The Bernini Innovative Italian Restaurant fills the bill. Stevie, our server, starts us out by suggesting a good wine...Castello D'Albola Classico Chianti. We accompany that with an appetizer, Beef Carpaccio...pepper crusted super thin raw beef tenderloin with capers, onions, shaved pecorino, and crostini and a nice drizzle of white truffle balsamic drizzle. We are definitely off to a good start. I order a dinner of Spaghetti a la Vongole...fresh little neck clams in roasted garlic, saffron broth with pancetta, roasted fennel and basil served over spaghetti. JoeG tries the Tortelloni Carbonara with Italian sausage, sautéed broccoli, crispy pancetta, and toasted pistachios. Those little pistachios were a great flavor surprise. Once again, this was a nice meal in a very enjoyable place.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Saturday, we make our way to the Tampa Amtrak station to board the Silver Star #91 to Hollywood, Florida. Originally we were booked to Miami but then we read Railroad Bill's Florida trip report and realized that HOL was the way to go (it pays to read these trip reports). We got a nice hotel right across the street from Gulfstream race track and its suppertime. Gulfstream is part of a very nice shopping area with lots of restaurants to choose from. We choose Cantina Laredo. We start with a couple of Dos Equis draft beers and Anuar, our server, suggested the Top Shelf Guacamole appetizer. He prepared the guacamole at the table. Are you sensing a theme here? Florida restaurants seem to like to perform at the table. This was a good appetizer choice because it lasted throughout the meal...you can spread a little guacamole on just about anything and make it even better![/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Oh, did I mention we are eating out on the patio...it is well below zero in Michigan!! For dinner I order Enchiladas De Mole--a sweet spicy blend of dried Mexican peppers creates a wonderful sauce over chicken enchiladas.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]JoeG goes for the Tacos de Pico--seasoned ground beef with sautéed onions and jalapeno with queso fresco. Another pleasant meal enjoyed in wonderful surroundings.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Sunday is our try at the Gulfstream ponies and nice ponies they are. The horses at this track are a class above the Tampa track. And we both have a good day with the wagering. But the highlight of the day is our quest for the best racetrack corned beef. This one is now at the top of the list. Take a look at that beauty...generous portion, excellent rye bread; melt in your mouth tender meat, and good quality mustard. Life is good BUT, it's only March. I think we will have a few more contenders before the end of the year![/SIZE]
Corned Beef @ Gulfstream - Hollywood FL by 2 Joe's JoeH, on Flickr
[SIZE=14pt]Monday we are back on the Amtrak train #98 headed back to the very cold WAS. We arrive in WAS on time. The weather is cold and the sidewalks are sloppy so we decide to stay close to the station. Our favorite haunt that is close by is Kelly's Irish Times. At lunchtime JoeG orders his usual pork slap sandwich and I go for the black forest ham with cheddar sandwich. We will survive until dinner in the diner.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The Cap Limited is ready to go on time for the trip back to Chicago. We seldom comment on the SCA's because we don't really know what their job entails outside of what we see (and we don't read job descriptions) but on this trip, Bill is the man. We have traveled with him a couple of times before. He is very attentive and always seems to be available in the car. And he keeps me in fresh ice. That's all I ask. Good job, Bill. We ask for a late dinner reservation. In the diner we are greeted with a couple of unusual things. First, no flower on the table...that should save Amtrak enough money to add a couple more lines, don't you think (I know this rant has been wrung out on AU discussions but I wanted to throw one more blast at this ridiculous cost savings cut) . Second, we have glass plates and glasses. I'm guessing this diner has gotten juggled into the lineup out of Chicago because of the dismal performance of the Empire Builder this winter. This theory wasn’t confirmed by any of the crew. Anyway, the food was fine and we didn't break any cups or saucers. A good night’s sleep and we arrive in Chicago on time.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]We both ride corridor trains home from here in the late afternoon (no diner). So, mid-afternoon we stop by our favorite pizza joint, Lou Malnati's for a salad and a pie. We are in a bit of a rut on our Chicago pizza options, but this place is a no brainer...excellent food, all the time. This one meal will hold us for lunch, dinner, and a late arrival home. JoeG counted a dozen engines setting at the engine shop as we pulled into the Chicago Amtrak yards. Apparently this winter has taken its toll on equipment. This resulted in both of the corridor trains taking us home being pulled by 500 (P32) series yard engines. JoeG boards the Illini to Carbondale and an hour later I ride the Pere Marquette back to Grand Rapids. This has been an excellent respite from the harsh winter weather. Double points are just around the corner...I'm sure you'll be hearing from us again soon!![/SIZE]
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