Eating Local on the Road

Jackson Avenue Coffee House, Charleston Illinois

Some days it might appear that we are eating our way around the US. Much of our schedule gets determined by the food needs of the four people traveling, and between all of us, it feels like someone needs to eat something at least every hour or so.

One of our biggest goals is to establish healthier habits on the road – to exercise more, eat well, generally care for ourselves. For both health and monetary reasons, we need and are trying to prepare food at the trailer as much as possible. But it’s also sometimes difficult with our schedule, or just fun and tempting, to eat out. We knew before we left that we wanted to try and eat local as much as possible. This is appealing in that it fits our health goals, supports the local economies we visit, and gives us a chance to know a place a little better, getting a feel for the communities.

Before this sounds too virtuous, you should know that we’ve done our share of Wal-mart grocery shopping and even had a couple of McDonald’s meals. Especially when the trailer is attached, the size of the rig really limits the places we can stop, and Wal-mart, Cracker Barrel, and truck stops are some of the few places we can easily park. And, it turns out, in some small towns, McDonald’s will have the best free wi-fi in town, so there it is. (We’re not going to talk about my new chain weakness – Tim Hortons.)

Porkchop, mashed potatoes and salad at Obed and Isaacs, Springfield, IL

But, when we’re able to unhook and tool around town in just the truck, we’ve tried to balance the Krogers and Wendys with lovely local farm stands and coffee shops and restaurants. And as many of you know, Lyman is doing his part to support the local brew scene where we visit. Here’s a sampling of some of the places we’ve enjoyed so far, not necessarily in chronological order: