Places We Send Our Friends to Eat in the U.S. (With or Without Kiddos)
We’ve been eating our way around the globe and compiled quite a list of super crave-able, and seemingly random, best places to eat in California and now we’re adding others states. Seriously, some of them I dream about. I am a person that feels if I’m going to pay the money and consume the calories, it better be worth it!
Most of these are kid friendly but we’ve included a few that you’ll want to enjoy without the interruptions which we’ve indicated.
I hope you love the list! Let us know if you make your way to any of these places in the comments. If you have some destination favorite eating spots, please let us know that too! We’re always looking for great new places to eat.
CALIFORNIA
Steve’s Steakhouse and Seafood. I’m just going to say it. We’ve been to Catalina several times now and I’ve never been impressed by the food! In fact we’ve actually had some scary meals on this Island where our food was questionably cooked, yikes! But Steve’s Steakhouse and Seafood was a welcomed surprise! Not only can you get an amazing view of the water (make reservations!), but the food was really good. The kid’s meal portion of steak is very good size, my shrimp was amazing and since we went there twice in one trip my husband tried both the swordfish and the steak and loved both. And can I just say the cheesy garlic bread is worth it! We’ve already sent several friends there who have all loved it too.
Grizzly Manor Cafe. This is THE place if you want a great big hearty breakfast. Old fashioned, huge pancakes. We’ve seriously driven the 1 1/2 hours just to have a late breakfast and walk it off in nature after. Expect a wait!
Fire Rock Burgers & Brew. We loved this place. It’s rare we find an atmosphere that feels like a Tavern for us that the kids also like. The kid meal portion size was very generous for their burger and fries and I loved the Carne Asada fries (if you love some heat!). I’m still craving their mango salad with fried jalapenos and would probably make the two hour drive just for that alone. It had a wine pairing for the salad which went perfectly with it and my husband got a burger with beer pairing. It was so good we ate there two nights in a row with the exact same orders, lol. We came on a weeknight in the winter so there was no wait but according to the Yelp reviews you better plan ahead during the busy season.
Moo Creamery. You would never know about this place unless someone told you (or yelp!). It’s a perfect stop if you are passing through Bakersfield and want something delicious. I bet the locals all know about it but since you can’t see it from the freeway you’d miss it otherwise. So Yum! It has some random ingredients, like sweet potato fries with Habanero ketchup and cinnamon marshmallow, but that what makes it such a fun and interesting burger joint.
Toomey’s. Lobster taquitos! Need I say more? Located at the village in Mammoth Lakes, California. Matt Toomey started his food adventure making sandwiches at a gas station! By the time we found him it was quite the hot spot and we were thrilled when he moved into the town so that it was more convenient to get his delicious lobster taquitos. My husband has loved the duck and many other dishes, but I barely stray from the taquitos because I love them so! Kid’s meal portions are very generous too.
Firestone Grill in San Luis Obispo is the place for a tri-tip sandwich. There are other locations, but we still think the San Luis Obispo one is the best! You can spot it by the constant line out the door. I’m more on the gluten-free side so I do a tri-tip salad, but seriously, don’t go here and skip the tri-tip. It’s the bomb!
South Swell Hand Dipped Ice-Cream. Can I just say “Yum!” We found this place by accident. We’d eaten dinner down the street and all these people were walking by with what looked like popsicles. It seemed odd to see so many people eating popsicles on the street (and looking really happy about it) so we followed them and found this little gem. You choose ice-cream (vanilla or chocolate) or a frozen banana as a base, and then they dip it in chocolate heaven. You choose toppings such as sprinkles, nuts, cake and even maple bacon. To top it off you get a swirl of a variety of sauces. My favorite is the frozen banana, with peanuts and a peanut butter topping. So good! The kids seem to love vanilla ice-cream, rainbow sprinkles and pound cake. Can’t go wrong really. Just look for the line!
Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers. This was a nice treat on our long drive back from Sedona. We had stayed in AZ much too late in the day and had been in the car for hours and were hungry and a little cranky. None of us wanted the usual fast food spots, nor did we want a long wait in a restaurant. Freddy’s was just the thing! Good burgers, good hotdogs, and a good veggie burger. We also enjoyed the custard, which tasted like a delicious creamy ice cream (try the Dirt-N-Worms sundae!). It was just the pick-me-up we needed to complete our drive home.
Arizona
Outlaw Grille.This was a nice little stop on our Sedona vacation when we were shopping for souvenirs. The boys had tri-trip sandwiches which they loved, we all enjoyed the onion rings, and I had a very large Cobb salad. The staff was very friendly and it has a glass enclosed room to get you out of the cold (depending on the time of year you visit). We’d definitely hit up this spot again!
Black Bart’s. Steakhouse, Saloon & Musical Review. So this is where my 9-year old discovered he loves steak. So much so that he begged for a second kid’s meal and because it was reasonably priced and we figured we could eat it too if he didn’t finish – we said yes. He ate the whole second one too! The biscuits in the skillet with cinnamon butter are delicious, as is the steak. The best part though is the atmosphere. It’s located in an RV-park, has a casual feel with newspaper clippings and an “outlaw” feel inside. And your waitstaff is the singing entertainment! This was definitely a fun stop. Check around for coupons to make it an even better deal!
Hawaii
Poi Dog Deli. I don’t know what it is about the part of Hawaii where we were staying but they seemed to think kids only eat Hamburgers and Chicken strips! While my boys do like those, after a few days they were REALLY sick of it. Even the Luau served it! I’ll tell you right off the bat that this deli is not inexpensive, but very little on the Island is. This is a nice stop if you’re looking for a healthy lunch, my gluten-free self was happy, and the kids loved it. You get popcorn while you wait and the walls are full of really cool photos. My Cajun-curry chicken salad sandwich was so good that I had ordered the half and ended up buying another half (get the full!).