Flagstaff Food Fest

 

This summer we did not know if we were going to go on a family vacation. I started a new job in late February and had no idea what my workflow would be like, so I was hesitant to plan for any chunk of time away from the office. As the school year wound down, our two teenage boys (especially the younger one) kept on asking if we would be going anywhere this summer and I kept on saying “we’ll play it by ear.” Of course, “we’ll play it by ear,” is one of those parental loophole phrases that really translates into “I severely doubt it, but don’t want to flat out disappoint you, so quit asking me.”

As I progressed in my job, two competing points factoring into the vacation equation became clear: 1) from about mid-May to mid-August, my place of employment switches to a “summer schedule,” which means that we work ten-hour days from Monday through Thursday and have the day off on Fridays (Yay!); and 2) some of my projects are extremely demanding, which means I often have to work a significant amount of time on the weekends (Boo!). Reconciling these two concepts in an effort to plan for a vacation is a tricky proposition, but this past week, as a major project was put to bed, I found that I unexpectedly might be able to take an extra day off and…wait for it…do a quick, sort of spontaneous, family getaway.

So it was, that on Monday we decided that we would be heading to Flagstaff, Arizona on Thursday for a quick two-night stay. As someone who likes to plan a vacation months in advance, hitting the road for a trip with no itinerary and only the vaguest of plans concerning what we would do once we got to our destination, was a tad unsettling. We made reservations to stay at a Days Inn in the eastern part of Flagstaff and knew that we wanted to eat at a critically acclaimed Mexican restaurant called Salsa Brava, but other than that the trip plan was somewhere between murky and hazy. No matter—we were all excited to get out of the 100+ degree heat for a couple of days.

As it turns out, our plan to eat at Salsa Brava on the first night of our trip was a perfect launching pad for what our trip ended up becoming—an excuse to eat at unique Flagstaff restaurants for three straight days. Yes, I did take the boys on a hike for a couple of hours on Friday morning, but other than that, the focus was on finding interesting eateries. And in that endeavor, we succeeded in spades.

While Flagstaff, Arizona may not be thought of in the same regard as Paris, Rome, or New York when it comes to high quality cuisine, the truth is that every city has its own share of hidden culinary gems if you put in the effort to find them. And in the case of our family, we are just as happy (in fact, happier) with hole-in-the wall mom and pop establishments, as we are with fancy five-star restaurants. So, join me, won’t you, as I take you on the Schwartzberg culinary tour of Flagstaff.

Day 1

Dinner: Salsa Brava – The featured restaurant on our culinary tour, Salsa Brava, is one that we stumbled across when we were last in Flagstaff in October of 2019. We all loved this place so much the first time, that we knew the next time we went to Flagstaff, we would have to eat there again, which is exactly what we did on Thursday night. Living in the Phoenix-metro area, we eat Mexican food on a frequent basis and have our favorite spots, so we are no stranger to this cuisine. So, trust me when I tell you that as good as the best Mexican place is in our area, Salsa Brava is even better. I’m no food critic, so I’d be hard-pressed to tell you what makes their food so much better than every other Mexican restaurant that I’ve been to, but I can tell you that the whole family finds the cuisine amazing. Perhaps it’s the unique menu selections, or the high altitude (Flagstaff rests at 6,909 feet), or the fact that the place is always so packed you have to wait at least 45 minutes to get seated so you’re starving by the time a fork enters your mouth, but every dish we’ve tried there has been sensational. I inhaled—I mean ate—the Portobello & Spinach Enchiladas. My wife and older son both had the Lobster & Shrimp Enchiladas, and my younger son had the Shrimp Street Tacos. In my younger son’s words: “the food was a 10 out of 10.”

Dessert: The Sweet Shoppe – After dinner we decided to head to downtown Flagstaff to walk around and look in the shops. What we hadn’t considered was that at 8:30 PM on a Thursday night, all of the retail shops were already closed. No matter—some of the food shops were still open, so while we couldn’t buy souvenirs, we could buy dessert. This we did at the Sweet Shoppe, which is another place we first discovered on our 2019 excursion. The Sweet Shoppe has sweets of all kinds—candy, baked goods, and gelato. On this occasion, we opted to go the gelato route. The worker there was very generous in letting us sample the flavors. Indeed, between the four of us, we probably sampled 20 different flavors before making our decisions. The final choices? Me – Stracciatella (Italian for “yummy”), Wife – Limoncello, Son 1 – Dark Chocolate Orange, Son 2 – Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate.

Day 2

Breakfast: Day’s Inn Complimentary Breakfast Buffet – Okay, I’ll admit this meal wasn’t quite on the same level as the rest. What it did have going for it, though, was that it was free, conveniently located, and filling. I had an average blueberry muffin, a decent egg and cheese omelet, and an adequate piece of toast. My wife and younger son took advantage of the nifty automatic pancake maker. There was apple juice and orange juice. My older son dared my younger son to mix the two and drink it, which he did. What do you expect? They’re teenagers, so that’s how they entertain themselves when not gaming.

Lunch: Restaurant (aka The Crown Railroad Cafe) – About two blocks from our motel was a large restaurant that we all thought was simply called “Restaurant,” because that is what the very prominent signage said. Every time we drove past it, we joked about the generically named establishment, never thinking we would end up eating there, because it seemed like more of a punchline than an eatery. So, when we got hungry for lunch on Day 2 of our trip, we never really considered “Restaurant” an option. I searched online for a suitable place for lunch and came across an interesting establishment called “The Crown Railroad Cafe.” As I read about the décor (the restaurant is railroad themed and features an elaborate miniature train set with a track that runs throughout the entire place) and the extensive menu (vast selection of diner-type food, featuring 66 different omelets, since they are located on Route 66) I decided this is the place we had to go, especially since it seemed to be located right near our motel. Then I clicked on the images of the place and, to my astonishment, found that “The Crown Railroad Café” and “Restaurant” were one in the same! Why they decided to display the word “Restaurant” in enormous 15-foot-high neon letters on top of the building and “The Crown Railroad Cafe” in illegible small print on the awning below, I did not know, but I promptly turned to my family and said, “Put on your shoes, we’re going to Restaurant!” About three minutes after we all put on our shoes, we arrived at Restaurant and were greeted by very friendly waitstaff. As we did the touristy thing of taking photos of each other sitting in the booth, the waitress came over and offered to take a picture of the four of us. The photo, which accompanies this blog post, is great for several reasons. First off, it’s the only photo of all four of us from this trip; second, in the upper lefthand corner, you can see signage that says “Flagstaff,” so years from now, we will all remember where the picture was taken; and finally, third, outside the window you can see both Route 66 and the railroad tracks that the restaurant was named for. The french-fries were crispy and not greasy, the coleslaw was freshly made and delicious, and the bread on everyone’s sandwiches was toasted to perfection. The generic “Restaurant” turned out to be way better than any of us would have imagined when we first drove past it the day before.

Mid-day Snack: The Sweet Shoppe – After lunch we decided to head back to downtown Flagstaff, because the souvenir shops were bound to be open at 3 PM on a Friday, and gosh darn it, we wanted souvenirs. Indeed, the downtown area was now bustling compared to the previous evening, and we joined in on the bustlement, checking out as many shops as we could in the eight-block radius that comprises the Flagstaff tourist hub. Of course, all this walking made us burn off our lunch and build up quite an appetite. Soon, we found ourselves in front of the Sweet Shoppe once again. And the truth is, you can’t be in front of the Sweet Shoppe without entering the Sweet Shoppe. While my wife and older son went right back to the gelato, I and my younger son, opted for the candy section instead. I left with a raspberry truffle (deliciously decadent) and my son left with some sort of chocolate stick with a gummy worm connected to it (tasty and weird.) The sugar rush managed to give us the energy we needed for the rest of our souvenir shopping, then it was back to the motel to nap until we were ready for dinner.

Dinner: Golden Dragon – After sleeping off our food comas it was time to decide where to have dinner. The family seemed to have a hankering for Asian cuisine, so it was off to Google to figure out what Flagstaff had to offer in that genre. Of the dozen or so restaurants that came up from my Google search we went with the one that a) had a very extensive menu, and b) was really easy to get to from our motel. Golden Dragon was an extremely large traditional-looking Chinese restaurant that was almost completely empty when we arrived a little after 8 PM. Indeed, when we walked in only one of the 50 or so tables in the place was occupied. As you can imagine, there was no wait to be seated. Now when I enter a restaurant of this size on a Friday night and find almost nobody there, I think one of two things must be going on: 1) the food is really bad, so they have no repeat customers, or 2) it’s actually a front for an illegal gambling den housed in the basement. Well, after eating the food at Golden Dragon (me: Family Style Tofu, Wife: Lemon Chicken, Son 1: Orange Chicken, Son 2: Shrimp Lo Mein) I can safely tell you that the answer is not #1, as the food (including our appetizers of spring rolls and crab puffs) was all very good to great. So, the next time I find myself if Flagstaff, I’m going to go to Golden Dragon and slip the hostess a twenty to see if she’ll show me to the hidden craps table.

Day 3

Breakfast: Miz Zip’s – On our last day in Flagstaff, we decided to skip the complimentary Days Inn breakfast buffet and try out another interesting looking eatery that we drove past a dozen times in the previous two days. Another mom-and-pop type restaurant prominently situated on Route 66, Miz Zips has a quaint smalltown diner feel. When we arrived at the relatively small café on Saturday morning around 10:30 AM the place was packed, but we were able to get a booth near the kitchen. The interior was chockful of Flagstaff and Route 66 historical memorabilia. On the wall next to me, for example, was a general store grocery receipt from 1909. On the radio was a blend of 50s and 60s rock-and-roll hits. All of this conspired to create a playful, nostalgic atmosphere. Then there was the food, which was delicious and plentiful. I wanted pancakes and noticed that on the menu the options were simply one pancake or two pancakes. I thought, “One pancake? Who eats just one pancake?” So I ordered two pancakes with blueberries. When my meal arrived, I realized why someone might eat just one pancake. Turns out, their pancakes are the size of freakin’ hubcaps! They were delicious, but I will admit I did not finish both pancakes—I got through about 1.75 pancakes before I was defeated. As for the rest of the food, everyone seemed more than satisfied with their various style of eggs and hashbrowns. (I snagged me some hashbrowns off one of my son’s plates and they were quite good.) Miz Zips was a perfect last meal on our culinary tour.

After our late breakfast, we gassed up and headed back down to Chandler, Arizona. The entire family agreed that our quick Flagstaff getaway was a rousing success, even if all we really did while we were there was eat. Oh yes, the boys and I did go on that hike for a couple of hours on Friday morning and the name of the trail could not have been more appropriate for this particular trip—Fatman’s Loop.