Around Town ~ Ol' Mad

Change can sometimes be difficult to handle but it can also have many rewards.  The changes that have transpired over time at the old Ice House have been transformative.  From a fledgling brewery, creating and brewing a variety of beers to opening their doors to welcome food vendors.  The change has been a time of transition and so worth the wait.  

Ol’ Mad is a wonderful stop for anyone looking to experience food in a creative and tasteful way, for Sulphur Springs.  No one around town has the same menu and features that Ol’ Mad brings to the table.  With the use of as many local products as possible, sustainability and quality are at the top of the list for Chef John at Ol’ Mad.  John brings his culinary skills and creativity from the West Coast, to help challenge your pallet at every bite.

Ol’ Mad is currently located in the same building where Backstory Brewery found its start, at 211 Magnolia Street in Sulphur Springs, their location is primed and ready for the growth that the city has planned for downtown.  While they are closed on Monday and have only dinner service from 4 p.m. - 9 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, you can find their doors fully open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday through Saturday, with brunch service on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Who could be sad about food now being offered at the brewery location, after all who doesn’t want a little bit to eat when consuming small batch beer.  Have you been wondering like I have where the name comes from, well we found out so that you could know.  Ol’ Mad, in Danish roughly means “Beer Food.” The restaurant is aptly named, since the main focus of the building is to still brew beer.

Since its inception, Backstory Brewery had the goal of reaching consumers beyond the county line, and so you can find their cans in select stores across North Texas.  Don’t forget you can still take home your favorite beer in a growler or if you happen to be out of town and want to share with your friends be sure to look for them at the store.  You never know what you might discover.  But while you dine be sure to grab a pint of your favorite or try one of their signature cocktails with your meal. 

Ol’ Mad is more than just a restaurant, they host and cater events on or off site.  I’ve even heard that the Freedom Ball will be held there in November.  I can’t wait to see what they serve up for their guests.  If you have a special occasion coming up and need some delicious and creative food, be sure to check out their menu to see what they can cook up for you.  

If you haven’t been in to try their food, be sure to do so soon.  We hope to stop in for brunch soon to experience a “brewery brunch”, and possibly a house made Bloody Mary.  You know the choices are good when the chef stated that he eats their burger almost everyday, so that has to be a top choice, as well as their short ribs or pork belly. 

Experience something new at Ol’ Mad and you just might find your next favorite place to eat in town.  The chairs have been upgraded and the atmosphere is perfect for gathering friends, or a quiet evening with your special someone.  We hope you give Ol’ Mad a try, you won’t be disappointed.

Travel ~ St. Louis Food scene

 

What is your favorite part about travel?  For us it is a chance to try out new food.  On a recent trip to St. Louis, Missouri to watch our daughter in a collegiate wrestling match, we explored some new places to eat.  I think food tends to be one of the best parts of traveling and a great way to experience the culture and new flavors.  Food off the beaten path, local dives, or just somewhere different, from other cities, states and countries is a great way to explore to find new dishes and tastes to consume.

 

                 The best restaurant on this stop is by far the Balkan Treat Box.  Only open for about four hours a day, the line might be long but well worth the wait.  I can imagine the wait in the summer is better than winter, but we braved the cold and stood in line.  Everyone in line confirmed it was worth the wait, and it did not disappoint.  Order your food by number unless you happen to be a native speaker, the dishes we ate were wonderful.  The #7, a woodfired eggplant “sandwich” topped with fresh veggies, cheese and thin sliced hard-boiled egg was by far the best item on the menu we tried.  The wood-fired flatbread really pulled the entire dish together, along with the combination of spices and dressing.  The Rice pudding was delicious and after a full meal, perfectly portioned for sharing. They offer daily specials, including a fish of the day.  If you are in St. Louis, I highly recommend you stop by the Balkan Treat Box. 

 

               Our next favorite stop was the St. Louis Foundry.  A repurposed electrical component manufacturing plant, made into a mixed-use space.  The restaurant portion of the foundry is reminiscent of a food court with stalls, with varying food choices.  This location is great for large groups who cannot decide what they want to eat.  There is definitely something for everyone at the Foundry.  From woodfired pizza, poke bowls, Asian-Mexican fusion to South Indian street food, no one is walking away hungry.  Since we met our daughter’s team at the Foundry, everyone ordered something different. No two meals were alike, if ordered from a different stall, and for those who consume alcohol there is a bar in the center for guests to purchase drinks from as well.  Along the outside of the building there are shops that can be reached from inside the food court area or by walking along the open space between the two sides.  Live music, VR and even a putt-putt stop there is entertainment and food for a great night out.  Everything we tried in the Foundry was delicious.  You could make multiple trips here and still have more food to try.  Grab your indecisive friends and family and meet up at the Foundry for lunch or dinner.

 

               Overall, we had a great trip to St. Louis to watch our daughter compete and had a great time finding new and exciting places to eat and enjoy our time together.  The chance to try new food makes each travel journey a new and exciting adventure.  We can hardly wait for the next one to see what new culinary experience we can have. 

Breakfast at the Oaks

 

               It might not come as a surprise to many of you but at the Oaks Bed and Breakfast, we serve breakfast.  While that might not be the case at some bed and breakfast locations, we have always felt that part of the best guest experience is around the breakfast table the next morning.  Breakfast serves as our chance to get to know our guests better and discover more about what brought them to Sulphur Springs. 

 

            Many times, overnight guests are passing through the area, and we want to make sure they do not miss out on the experience that is Sulphur Springs.  You would be surprised how many guests have not made the journey downtown to explore the square and step inside the glass bathrooms.  Even on these cold winter days, that is a must see stop while visiting Sulphur Springs and the Oaks bed and breakfast.

 

            Before we say goodbye to our guests or have a great day, we sit down to enjoy the first meal of the day together.  I for one can not continue on my day without breakfast, as I’m pretty sure I would wilt away from hunger.  We always choose to serve a hearty breakfast filled with great food and even better conversations.  For your enjoyment, I want to feature my favorite breakfast’s that we made and served our guests while in-house.  This month’s favorite is our polenta stacks.

 

            While this does take a bit of time to create the end result is worth the time.  This meal can be made gluten free and dairy free if that is how you choose to make it or need to make it.  We start off by preparing the polenta first, so it has plenty of time to cook and absorb all the liquid to make it ready to eat.

 

            Next, we start with spinach and mushrooms.  Gather more spinach than you think you will need.  Once it cooks down the fullness of leaves will diminish, and you might find that you need more in order to serve your group.  Slice your mushrooms and add in your favorite spices to flavor them so that they complement the spinach and polenta. 

 

            Now you are ready to make your cream sauce.  You do not have to have cream sauce to top your dish, this was an added layer I wanted to supply for looks and flavor.  I added parmesan into my polenta and the parmesan cream sauce just pulled those flavors together on the top.  We poach our eggs directly into a water bath and do not have a special pan to cook them in.  However, you choose to make your eggs is up to you.  We add an egg for extra protein.

 

            I stack each layer one on top of the other starting with the polenta and work my way up with spinach, mushrooms, egg, and sauce.  Change your order up to whichever way is more appealing to you.  We serve all our breakfast items with a homemade pastry, fruit and side of sausage or bacon, if not already made into the dish. 

 

            We hope that you might give this breakfast a try at home for your family or guests.  Or book a night with us and make a request for breakfast.  We do fulfill requests when guests ask.  Enjoy and we can hardly wait until next month to share with you our favorite meal we serve. 

Jill Dutton ~ Meet and Greet

 

The Texas House race is headed to a runoff election this season, between Jill Dutton and Brent Money. This week we hosted House hopeful Jill Dutton in a meet and greet, sponsored by Craig and Chaney Johnson. The runoff election is on January 30, with early voting starting on January 22-26, 2024.

 

An important endorsement was announced at the meet and greet by the Hopkins County Law Enforcement Association, who now endorses Jill Dutton. This is an important endorsement for her from Hopkins County which bolsters her local endorsements even more.  To see a full list please visit her campaign website.

 

Jill Dutton grew up in the Dallas area and moved to Van Zandt County where she and her husband and three children live, and they are owners of a construction firm. Dutton first picked up the desire to run for public office when she ran for a school board position. Once elected she served in that position for 10 years. Her other election and political experience have been through supporting roles, helping other people in their successful election bids.

 

Her priorities are to represent Hopkins, Van Zandt, and Hunt counties, as a listening ear, and bringing resources back to our counties with better local control. She also wants to help bring money back to local cities for capital improvements. Dutton feels that our schools need more support and wants to remove the STAAR test, with a better system of accountability for future and present students. She also supports Governor Abbott regarding securing our boarders, along with many other issues that area residents are also passionate about.

 

Dutton wants to remind voters that early voting starts on January 22-26, for the runoff election set for January 30. Once the seat is filled the next round of campaigning for voting begins, for the primary March 5 election. She stated “we need prayers and people turning out to vote and making donations. It takes money to beat Money.”

 

To register to vote please click on the following link, so that your voice can be heard in this election and any other future elections. Register to vote today.

 

Travel East Texas ~ Ham Orchards

 

    Ham Orchard has been operating in Terrell, Texas since 1979.  Located at 11939 County Road 309, Terrell, TX and open Monday - Saturday, from 9-5 p. m., from Mid May to Mid August.  We stopped by to purchase all things Peach.  We enjoyed peach soft served ice cream, fresh peaches and pulled pork with a peach glaze.  Ham Orchard has a beautiful farm stand that has all the summer, farm goodies you could think of.  

    From canned veggies to fresh veggies, there is something there for everyone one.  We brought home some fresh peaches that were melt in your mouth goodness, as well as some peach cinnamon rolls for breakfast in the morning.  You can also pick up a variety of baked goods and preserves. 

    Our peaches were barely made it home, before being devoured by all the kids.  The juicy sweetness of the peaches were just melt in your mouth goodness, you hated to see it end once you made it to the pit. All of our peaches were orange fleshed, instead of white and had that just picked flavor.

    All most all of the kids in our group enjoyed fresh peach or strawberry flavored soft served ice cream.  You could defiantly taste the fresh fruit made into each lick of the cone.  You could even swirl the two flavors together to get the best of both worlds. 

 

    After we perused the store, we made our way back outside to enjoy from fresh, cooked bar-b-que.  Since Peach is King, we had at least one order of Peach Pulled Pork.  Ribs and chicken were also a hit with our group.  Although my foodie kid was not the biggest fan of the peach pulled pork, and would have rather had general pulled pork, we made note of that for the future.  

    The only thing that might have made the trip even better would have been a pick your own variety of visit.  The kids would have had a blast selecting their own peaches from the trees.  Hopefully we can make it to the pick your own farm closer to home.  

    On the way back we did stop and visit with the Transformer protector, Bumblebee.  A life size replica is standing tall at a local gas station waiting for your stop and a photo or two.  If you happen to be a Geocacher, there is a cache located here as well as at the Orchard.  Enjoy the adventure to Ham Orchard and Bumblebee. 

Let's Eat ~ Flip's Burgerland

 

    For this month I had to call in a favor to make sure I could be able to review Flip's Burgerland to the best of my ability and Toby totally came through for me.  As the name suggests Flip's is one of the locations downtown, located at 210 Main Street, Sulphur Springs, Texas; where you can grab a fresh cooked burger and fries. I just love the total play on words for the name of this business, IYKYK.  To be clear, burgers is not all they serve, you can have a grilled chicken sandwich as well.  

    If you happen to know, I actually do not eat meat.  When it as suggested I swing by Flip's I had to make a call to see if they could hook me up with a vegetarian option.  We worked it out and based on looks you would never know that I was not eating meat, in my opinion.  Since I didn't want to just eat fries, but they could be eaten as a meal if you only wanted some spuds. 

    I loaded my burger with grilled mushrooms and onions and everything else they top them with, including cheese.  After all what is a burger with out some sort of cheese.  Of course I also ordered French fries.  I loved how if you are dining in, your food comes out right on a piece of paper.  The fries did have a boat to help contain them, but other wise it was straight paper.  Makes clean up easier I imagine. 

    I watched them package up to go orders and he even uses the paper to hold all the fries together when sending the order out.  Great way to save on not having to wash dishes and reducing Styrofoam in the land fill. The fries and burger were hot and delicious.  You can basically take your burger and make it how you want and it will be served to you, just that way.  The mushrooms and onions were done to perfection, and added a wonderful flavor.

    Here is one of the best parts, starting Sunday after Thanksgiving they are going to be open for lunch only, Sunday - Wednesday from 11 a. m. to 3 p . m they will be open and the grill will be hot.  I'm so happy to be able to recommend another restaurant option for guests who happen to be in town on Sunday.  They will also have dinner hours Thursday - Saturday when they will be open from 11 a. m. to 8 p. m.  

    Pull up a chair and order your fresh, hot burger just the way you like it.  You won't want to miss out on Flip's Burgerland the next time you stay at the Oaks bed and breakfast while in Sulphur Springs.