Friday, July 3, 2009

Cattleman's Steakhouse

I saw something on the Travel Channel about steak houses in the U.S. and they mentioned Cattleman's. I decided that I would make an effort to try it during my trip to El Paso. Cattleman's is located outside of El Paso near Faben's. It's about a 15 min. drive to get to the Faben's exit. Then you follow a two lane road to Cattleman's.
Once you arrive there, there are several gates to enter the ranch. As we entered the ranch I saw the 'petting zoo' area. They had deer, an emu, bunnies, peacocks, and other animals.

This is the entrance to the restaurant. Right inside is a some kind of mini calvary museum.

A long western themed hallway leads to the hostess station.

This was our view from the restaurant. Pretty.

As for the food....we didn't get appetizers. I ordered the 10 oz. ribeye and my companion ordered the 'Cowgirl' ( a 1 1/2 lb. T-bone steak). The dinners came with bread, pineapple coleslaw, texas beans and your choice of potato, corn, or rice.

The steaks were perfectly cooked. I loved the slaw and beans. My companion enjoyed his steak but I didn't like mine. I thought that it was over salted ( actually it tasted too salty). The bread they served was not freshly baked. They were rolls that seemed stale. It was a lot of food, which we didn't finish. I think the two dinners came to about $70 with tip. I'm glad I got to try Cattleman's, but I doubt we will return.





Thursday, July 2, 2009

Whataburger

I was introduced to Whataburger about 5 years ago. I liked that it is open 24/7 and their drink cups are stryofoam (to keep drinks nice and cold in that hot Texas weather). Driving around El Paso, I noticed as many Whataburgers as Sonics.
Basically, you order your food and pay at the counter. They give you drink cups and a number to take back to your table. When your food is ready, they bring it out to your table. And there is some kid that walks around with condiments on a tray. This was my first time eating inside a Whataburger. Usually we just go in the drive thru.
What can I say about the food? Simple. I got the #1 combo (whataburger, fries, and a drink). The burger comes with lettuce, tomatoe, chopped onions, and mustard. Looks like a small patty doesn't it?
I enjoyed the food. It isn't amazing but it beats McDonald's. Everytime I see a Whataburger sign, I am reminded of the cartoon King of the Hill. I love the show because I used to watch it with my father. And the show mentions Whataburger a few times. They also mention Chico's Tacos but I didn't get to go there during this trip.

I forgot to add that they serve a breakfast menu as well. My favorite item from it is the honey chicken biscuit. It's a biscuit with honey and a fried chicken tender in it.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Bumsted's Tucson, AZ

Bumsted's
500 N. 4th Ave.
Tucson, AZ
I went on a roadtrip to El Paso, TX last week. It was a short trip. On my way there I drove through Tucson. This was my first time stopping in Tuscon. I had looked up places to eat at in Tucson on Yelp. It was between Bumsted's and a place that made banh mi's. I decided that I would wait to go to Saigon Sandwiches when I returned to San Diego.
The interior of Bumsted's was not what I was expecting. When you walk in, there are booths and a long hallway. Off to the right is a big room painted in some kind of wine and purple. And chandeliers.
This is what you see when you fist walk in. That display case is filled with desserts. I think various cheesecakes, custards, and cakes.
As for the food....my companion ordered the BLT with dorito chips. And I got the Mega-Byte which is a club sandwich with sweet potato fries. We were starving after our long drive so I almost forgot to take pictures before we started eating so forgive partially eaten sandwiches. The sandwiches were HUGE. Both of us could only eat half of our sandwiches. I didn't try the BLT but was told it was great. Notice they messed up our order and served my fries with my companion's sandwich.

As for my sandwich, it was big and filling. It had ham, turkey, roast beef, lettuce, tomatoe, red onions, and mayo on it. My only complaint was the bread. It tasted 'not freshly baked'. I've had better bread elsewhere. They served their sandwiches with pickle spears and ketchup with the fries. The fries were over cooked and just not very good. I was expecting fat sweet potato fries, but these were shoestring style.
For two sandwiches, one soda, and a water came to $23. Seemed kind of high for just sandwiches. I don't know if I would recommend Bumsted's. It was okay.