Signal Hill - High Point of Arkansas

Signal Hill, in Mount Magazine State Park, is the highest point in the state of Arkansas. Mount Magazine is a plateau in the Boston Mountains, part of the Ozark National Forest, about 120 miles northwest of Little Rock and 17 miles southeast of Paris. I have always envisioned Arkansas as a mountainous state and was a little surprised and disappointed at how "hilly" it was, as opposed to mountainous. It reminded me a little of West Virginia, although more populous and with smaller hills. 

We were traveling from Little Rock to Oklahoma City anyway and Signal Hill was about an hour diversion that allowed us to break up that drive into two segments. We made reservations at the Mount Magazine Lodge which is just a few hundred yards from one of the trail heads to Signal Hill. 

Although Signal Hill is not all that high by western U.S. standards, we drove up from Havana on a long road with some switchbacks that offered little visibility at times from fog, then eventually emerged above the fog for a view above it, as though looking across a vast inland sea. A roadside lookout just inside the park provided a view with a nice sense of elevation and a "Bear Crossing" sign added a feeling of wildness. 

There are three trail heads and we took the one which starts across the street from cabin no. five, just down the road from the lodge. The trail head elevation is 2,580 feet. The trail slopes up gently over the course of .72 miles, with an elevation gain of 173 feet, through leafless trees and a forest floor of brown fallen leaves and lichen covered rocks. 

Judy at the trail head.

Mount Magazine Lodge in the distance.

Judy hikes ahead.

Another trail merges into the trail we were on.

The high point, at 2,753 feet, does have a sense of elevation over its surroundings, but not much of one. A bench is provided for those weary from the "hike" and a "summit" register is located inside a mail box nearby. There is supposed to be a 400 square foot stone map of Arkansas at the top, but I didn't see it. 

The real high point of the diversion was the stay at Mt. Magazine Lodge which is very nice. There were only a few visitors at the lodge which reminded us somewhat of the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite.

Cafe 43 - Dallas

The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is located on the campus of SMU (Southern Methodist University) in Dallas, Texas. Cafe 43, so named because "W" was the 43rd president, and the restaurant is on the premises. We decided to try it and were pleasantly surprised. 

We were given a basket of wonderful cheddar cheese rolls that tasted home-made and also some cheesy nutty flat bread. 

It was cold outside and we had to walk a ways to get there, so I was intrigued by the poblano chicken chili with avocado. It had wonderfully fresh ingredients with nice chunks of poblano pepper, some avocado, corn and chicken, but it was disappointingly mild, mild, mild. When I see poblano, I think heat, and this lacked it. With some seasoning, I could have transformed this mild concoction into something really good. 

I also got "Mrs. Bush's Favorite Sandwich" which was tomato, avocado, mozzarella and mayonnaise on very fresh, moist bread. I got it with some fresh fruit which was ripe and flavorful. Mrs. Bush has good taste as her sandwich combination has incredible mouth feel and mild, but distinctive flavors. 

Judy got a roasted beet salad with mache, blue cheese and a sherry vinaigrette. Mache is also known as lamb's lettuce and has a rounded leaf and deep green color. It had slices of both yellow beats and red beets and tiny round, pointy red peppers I'd never seen before. I've identified the peppers as pimenta biquinho, also known as little beak peppers, a very nice tasty addition to a salad. They have 500 to 1,000 Scoville units compared to a paprika chili pepper which has 250 to 1,000 Scoville units. 

In the land of steak and bbq where vegetables consist of cheesy corn, french fries and fried okra, this was a wonderful find. The restaurant fits the warmth and charm of the Bush family. 

Y.O. Ranch Steakhouse - Dallas

Texas is meat country and also home to lots of wild game ranches. I figured that there might be some restaurants featuring wild game that would be fun to try. So I googled wild game and Dallas and Y.O. Ranch Steakhouse stood out as the best option. In fact their website trumps that they have "the most extensive wild game menu in Dallas." But it is also known as a fine steakhouse and has previously been voted as having the best steak in Dallas by some group or another. The restaurant is located at 702 Ross Avenue in downtown Dallas, not too far from the former Texas Book Depository and Dealey Plaza where John F. Kennedy was assassinated. 

It is in a very nice area and the interior is quite elegant, but with an outdoor/sporting type decor. A smattering of stuffed animal heads and a football game on a big screen with the sound turned off. It is more elegant than the Buckhorn Exchange in Denver, perhaps more on par with The Fort in Morrison, the two restaurants I am most familiar with that mirror this same genre. The interior is fairly dark and so my pictures are not great. 

Judy knew I was looking forward to this meal and let me order. Despite the wild game, I got distracted by the special that night, a 40 ounce tomahawk rib eye, and ordered it for the two of us to share. However, the waiter came back and told us they were out of the tomahawk rib eye, so I went for what I'd originally intended to get. 

We got several appetizers. "Louie's Venison Roll Ups" are bacon-wrapped axis deer venison with jalapeno and smoked mozzarella, brushed with a molasses Dijon dressing. Five of the roll ups came on a plate that we shared. It was a nice combination of mild sweet and tame hot and very tender. 

Louie's vension roll ups

Lamb ribs, one of my favorites, were dry rubbed and roasted, basted with a plum molasses wasabi glaze. The ribs were a little crispy, the sauce was quite sweet and only mildly hot, a very nice complement to the lamby taste I love that still stood out. Lamb ribs are a very unusual menu item, so I order them anytime I see them. These were not the best lamb ribs I've had, but that is not to say that they were still very, very good. 

Lamb ribs

Our last appetizer was Tabasco goat cheese creamy grits. They were more mild than I anticipated and were pleasing, but not as distinctive as I expected them to be. Neither the Tabasco or goat cheese stood out. 

Tabasco goat cheese grits

We shared a cup of smoked sweet corn chowder with wild boar bacon, cotija cheese, diced sweet potato and cilantro oil. The ingredients sound amazing, but are very understated, very mild and screaming for more cotija cheese. 

Sweet corn chowder

We also shared some mashed potatoes because that is Judy's thing. 

Mashed potoatoes

We each got an entree. One was a 10 ounce buffalo filet that has been featured on the Food Network, although I was unable to find it in a quick search. 

10 ounce buffalo filet

The other was the "Wild Game Mixed Grill," a "trio of wild game meats that changes daily". For us, it included a 5 ounce buffalo filet, two boneless quail medallions and a venison filet. 

From left to right, venison filet, quail medallions and buffalo filet

I'd never eaten buffalo filet until Judy got it at the Sylvan Lake Lodge in South Dakota and it is amazing. Much more tender than the buffalo rib eye that I tend to focus on. Served with a warm but very red center and a nice, salty, carmelized crust on the outside that combines with the warm red center for luxurious sensory and flavor bites. 

Inside look of buffalo filet, nice warm red center.

The venison filet was not quite as tender and was also a little stronger in flavor, but very good. However, I prefer the buffalo. The quail medallions were ordinary: not particularly tender or flavorful. But despite the fact I preferred the buffalo filet, the wild game platter was the better choice because of the opportunity to try the different meats.

I really enjoyed Y.O. Ranch Steakhouse, and I'm glad we visited, but I wasn't wowed by it. Everything was good, particularly the buffalo filet and the lamb ribs, but nothing captured my imagination and has me dreaming about it and salivating to come back again. 

Meddlesome Moth - Dallas

The Meddlesome Moth, located at 1621 Oak Lawn Lane in Dallas, Texas may rank in the top ten of restaurants I've been to (along with The Fort, Animal, Incanto, Kaikaya By the Sea in Tokyo, FIG, True, Red Medicine, Hen of the Wood, and Au Cinquieme Peche). I love everything about it: the name, very creative and original; the setting, comfortable and open; a great waiter; and most of all, the food, unusual, fresh ingredients, original, creative and delicious.   

The Most Delicious Deviled Eggs were eggs somehow cooked in soy, note the brownish exterior which permeates into the interior a little bit, and topped with Sriracha sauce. Sprouts that accompanied them added texture to the taste. A simple dish, with simple ingredients, but very good.

My favorite of the dishes, and this ranks high on any dish I've ever had, was the Crispy Sweetbreads. Some sort of brain (cow, pig, I don't know), lightly breaded and cooked in a mixture including sorghum and fire-glazed cider. I've only eaten brains a few times and was a bit squeamish about it, and the taste was so-so, but these were first class. The texture was firm, with a nice mouth feel, and a sweety, savory taste that I luxuriated on. I love any chef that can take offal and turn it into wonderful. 

Crispy sweetbreads 

The sweetbreads are visible inside this bit-sized piece. 

Next we had beef bone marrow with salsa verde and capers. The presentation was stunning with the vivid green salsa blanketing the marrow. The bone marrow was a little better at The Fort and at Animal, but this was still great.

Chinatown Fried Farro was farro, a type of wheat that is cooked but still crunchy, sugar peas, hen of the wood mushrooms, ginger, egg and "bourbon barrel soy." A one of a kind dish for me at a restaurant. The soy added a real salty flavor, the farro was warm and crunchy and the egg and mushroom added a nice contrasting soft element and flavor.

Pieces of mushroom and egg are visible in the farro.

Last, we had spiced lamb breast with white beans and leeks. The lamb was spread out and rolled into a roll and then cut into slices. It had a filling that appeared to be spinach and something else I couldn't identify. It was the most unusual lamb I've had, with a deep red color that almost made it look like corned beef. Despite the "spiced" label, it was still quite mild. The white beans were mild and the leek was mostly decorative.

Our waiter was fun, told us about the owner who owns Six Flags and other restaurants that all have something to do with flight.

Each of the five dishes was good and there were other menu items that looked fun like griddled bobwhite quail with pumpkin grits, grilled yellow tail collar, chicken skin chips, sesame duck wings, rabbit pot pie and steak and stout pot pie. 

Railhead Smokehouse - Fort Worth

Our last bbq destination was Railhead Smokehouse in Fort Worth, Texas. We got there just after 11:00 a.m., very early, so that we could catch an IMAX movie that started at 12:15, and we stood in line behind about 15 people. And people just kept coming. The place is popular. All of the people behind the counter wore t-shirts with the slogan, "Life is too short to live in Dallas." The slogan also appears at the bottom of the menu on the website. 

They did not have pulled pork, so we had to settle for pork ribs, brisket and sausage. For sides we got potato salad, beans, coleslaw and cheddar peppers.

In addition to the customary bread, we got a dill pickle slice and a large slice of onion.

The cheddar peppers were different. The jalapeno inside was not whole, like jalapeno poppers I've had. Inside was cheddar cheese and pieces of jalapeno, more cheddary and less peppery. They were nice, different, but I still prefer jalapeno poppers. 

Cheddar peppers

The potato salad was mediocre, way below the smoky potato salad in Arkansas, and not on the same planet with the twice baked mashed potatoes in Texarkana. Very sub-par by comparison. 

Potato salad

The beans were also different. They had a weird consistency and taste, but I can't place them. Pinto beans? Not sure. But they were worse than the canned tasting beans in Arkansas and, again, vastly inferior to the beans in Texarkana. 

The cole slaw was tasteless. It was even worse than the beans. I only ate a couple of bites. This place was a side disaster. Why do people go there? 

Coleslaw

Then I tried the pork ribs. Large, smokey, riddled with smoke induced pink coloring and moist. Best ribs of the four restaurants. That's why they come. 

The brisket was moist, fatty, smokey and full of flavor. Bingo. Best brisket. Another reason to come. 

The sausage, a jalapeno sausage, was covered in bbq sauce which I don't like, was a little overcooked and did not have the flavor of the sausage in Little Rock or Hot Springs. However, it was better than the sausage in Texarkana.

Railhead Smokehouse would probably be no. two out of the four bbq places we visited, but just because the ribs and brisket were so good. If they had sides anything like Naaman's in Texarkana, this would be no. one. Naaman's, because of the consistent quality and fantastic sides, was my overall favorite. 

Whole Hog Cafe - Little Rock, Arkansas

This is the third of my four posts on bbq in the north Texas and Arkansas area. See my post on Naaman's in Texarkana for some background. 

The University of Arkansas mascot is the razorback and the call "sooey pig" is something I associate with their fans. So the name "Whole Hog Cafe" seemed like a natural for bbq in Arkansas and it was highly rated on Yelp. 

We went for lunch and it was going to be our primary meal of the day, so we decided to share the "Ultimate Platter" which was not on the menu, but on a chalk board in the restaurant. It included pulled pork, beef brisket, pulled chicken, pork ribs and three sides - we got baked beans, potato salad and cheesy corn. We also ordered a side of sausage as we were comparing sausage at each of the four restaurants. 

The Ultimate Platter

Each table at Whole Hog came with a set of six kinds of bbq sauce. It was fun to try the various sauces on the meat, particularly the meat I was less fond of, like the pulled chicken and pulled pork. Judy's favorite sauce was no. 5, "sweet, dark, & bold molasses flavor." My favorite was no. 3, which was no. 2, "tangy, tomato, smooth, sweet and slightly spicy," but "spicier." No. 6, "rich mustard & vinegar" was good on the sausage. 

I've never had pulled chicken before and it was okay, more moist than I expected, but bland compared to some of the other offerings. So it was a good base to try the bbq sauces on. 

The pulled pork was dry and my least favorite of the restaurants. 

The brisket was dry and had less flavor than the brisket at other joints, so it was my least favorite. 

The sausage was plump, juicy and full of flavor, my favorite of all the sausage we had.

The ribs were pretty moist, but were only third out of four of those we tried. 

The potato salad was virtually identical to the smoky potato salad we had in Hot Springs, with sour cream added to it. Perhaps it is a regional thing? I liked it. 

The beans were also similar to those in Hot Springs, like canned beans. 

The cheesy corn was quite good. 

Whole Hog ended up being my least favorite of the four bbq restaurants we visited, although it did have the best sausage by far, which was my favorite bbq item.