Kalispell Questions - Traffic/Expensive Restaurants!!!

[rickers]

OK I know of Capers. That's the place that used to be called Max's isn't it ? $18. for a plate of pasta !
I enjoy expensive food if the food is worth the high price. I guess I'll have to at least try Capers but I have a feeling that they may be too hoity toity and wouldn't serve me without being all dressed up. That I will not do. I don't mind paying high prices but if they want my money they have to put up with me leaving a trail of dog hair from my clothes !

[jimj]

Hmmm, good food?
Let's start with the Back Room/Night owl, I concur with the above opinion, it's on par with a Dennys that does BBQ. Short ribs that aren't really short ribs, untrimmed meat so fat is prevelent, bottled bbq sauce etc. I would also agree that there are NO good places in C-Falls anymore.

Famous Daves is the McDonalds of BBQ, you're paying for the ambience and I've waited up to an hour to get my food even when it wasn't busy and it was cold to boot. If I were to eat at a bbq chain it'd be Corkys but unfortunately they don't exist here.

If it's true southern BBQ you want I'd go to Piggy Back BBQ in whitefish (piggybackbbq.com) you may have to wait a bit for the food but it's cooked fresh to order.

Mexican food? There is no good mexican in this valley. There's some barely ok mexican but it doesn't even meet the taste level that you could get off a taco truck in GA or CA.
As for Italian, we don't eat out at italian places because it's way too expensive and it's way,way cheaper to make it at home. Did you know that Italian food is one of the cheapest foods for a restaraunt to make?

Chinese, there are only 2 that I'd walk in and neither are owned by chinese people. The Alley connection is one and Charley Wongs is the other, both owned by the same family from southeast asia or Korea.
Sushi? The only place I go for that is Sushi Now in Bigfork right by Subway. He orders his seafood overnight right from Hawaii and gives a decent value for the price.
Seafood? Well I guess I'd go to Skippers if I was going to eat seafood out but understanding they're the McDonalds of seafood.
With the exception of Sushi (and I have to know the Sushi chef besides) I will not eat seafood in a place that's over a thousand miles from an ocean.

Frugals, I was in there last week and will NEVER go back. When we pulled up to get the food I looked at the guy cooking and was shocked to see a cast on his right hand to the mid arm that was filthy as were his fingers and he was using that hand to cook with. No gloves, no wrap around the cast, nothing. All I can say is not with my mouth I won't!!!

I did run into a decent fish taco place in Home Depot's parking lot right next to Subway. If you're in a hurry and are craving fish tacos it's the place to go.

There's a fairly new family place that I beleive is called the "First Street East Cafe" that serves comfort food cooked by mom and grandma. Reasonable prices, good portions and so far it's tasted great. I'm told they have a heck of a breakfast on Sundays. I highly recommend them. I also find it neat that they have a sign up in the window that says something like "We're sorry if we are closed when we should be open but since we're a family run place sometimes family emergencies come up". Hmmm, down home honesty, how refreshing!

[jimj]

Originally Posted by rickers

OK I know of Capers. That's the place that used to be called Max's isn't it ? $18. for a plate of pasta !
I enjoy expensive food if the food is worth the high price. I guess I'll have to at least try Capers but I have a feeling that they may be too hoity toity and wouldn't serve me without being all dressed up. That I will not do. I don't mind paying high prices but if they want my money they have to put up with me leaving a trail of dog hair from my clothes !

The last report I got about Capers was the other day. The people had a gift certificate and 2 meals were about $65. When the meal was done they went to McDonalds to get a burger since they were still hungry. It's CA foo foo food
like one thing they told me was 4 green beans leaning across a 3 tablespoon scoop of mashed potatoes drizzled with some sauce and a 2-3 oz portion of fish or steak. That was the meal.
Not me! I used to eat like that all the time but only when on a company expense account on company business.

[Brad4JC]

Originally Posted by jimj

Frugals, I was in there last week and will NEVER go back. When we pulled up to get the food I looked at the guy cooking and was shocked to see a cast on his right hand to the mid arm that was filthy as were his fingers and he was using that hand to cook with. No gloves, no wrap around the cast, nothing. All I can say is not with my mouth I won't!!!

JIMJ,
WHY did you have to go and ruin Frugals for me??? Yes, I do agree with you about Famous Daves but there is just not a whole lot of other choices for bbq although I want to try Tamaracks. You are right about Mexican food. I have not yet found anything even half way decent in the valley. Besides I make my own Mexican food much better than you can get in a restaurant (so my family thinks anyway). Anyway, thanks for the tips! I REALLY didn't need to hear your Frugals story although it is probably a good thing I did. I will look more closely who is making my food next time.

[Redraven]

Sadly, the best restaurants in the Valley are long gone. Frenchy's Chinese Gardens in Whitefish (burned down), The Orient Express, off Hwy 93 near Happy Valley (it was in old railroad dining cars. it, too, burned down). La Dump, at the land fill turnoff on Hwy 93 (the booths were made from old cars). The Club Rocco on the hill in Hungry Horse, across from the turn off to the Dam (it is now a church). The Pines Cafe in C. Falls (had a tree growing up through the middle of the building). There was a little cafe in "downtown" C.Falls next to the theater that was kind of a hang out for the teens, can't remember the name, but the food was good. LONG, LONG ago, the Elkhorn Bar in Hungry horse had a cafe that was pretty good, but it closed, then eventually the bar burned down.
the Log Cabin Cafe in Hungry Horse was pretty good, then not so good, then pretty good again. Frans cafe in Hungry Horse was EXCELLENT, good food, sizable portions, and affordable.
(sigh) Ancient history, they are all gone now.
Oh, yeah, how could I forget The Park Inn, on the corner of Hwy 93 & 2, in Kalispell! GREAT place. Gone.
What about the lunch counter at Sykes Grocery? Is it still going?

[rickers]

Yikes Sykes, I haven't eaten there for years. Best price for a breakfast anywhere ! ( but ya kinda get what ya pay for) They had all the coffee you could drink for 10 cents.
Famous Dave's is a joke and Frugals only got one try from me, very so so run of the mill burgers. There is a Chinese place that shares a building next to the site of the old golf coarse just before you come into Whitefish on 93 on the right. I like it fine and I've never gotten sick from eating there ! As far as finding real good Mexican food in the Flathead area goes you have to settle for mediocre Tex Mex slop. Or pathetic fast food Mexican food.
We make the best Tortas De Pescado, Carne Asada Tacos and Congrejos Enchiladas this side of the border right here in the Mayberry of Montana.

[Stephan_K]

Oh ya... you got Clean Wongs and Dirty Wongs on Hwy 2 W in town for Chinese buffets. I do like Dirty Wongs... good teriyaki sticks . Never got sick there and have eaten everything there a LOT . If it says ALL YOU CAN EAT... I'm there !

[Dangerous Dave]

Night owl, I hear, has the best ribs.
Can't say from experience since the power was out on the entire block when we went there. But my inlaws swear by it and take all of their out of town visitors there.

[Stephan_K]

Originally Posted by Dangerous Dave

Night owl, I hear, has the best ribs.
Can't say from experience since the power was out on the entire block when we went there. But my inlaws swear by it and take all of their out of town visitors there.

I wouldn't say they have the best baby backs... but comparable to Famous Daves at half the price ! The wife and I fight over the fried bread and the honey butter that comes with just about everything... good stuff.

Tamaracks has the best baby backs that I've had in a very long time from a restaurant ! And if a place has baby backs, I'm on them... all else takes a back seat until the ribs have been tried.

[Dogster]

I was born in Kalispell 62 years ago, and have lived here most of my life. I'm getting ready to move away, never to return, at least not for long - I want to semi-retire by the ocean. Kalispell was once a great town, but no more. It's been homogenized, bastardized, and chainstoreized into a crowded, elitist combination of California schlock, second rate art galleries, third rate casinos, and fundamentalist churches.

As to restaurants, the best in recent memory was First Avenue West, gone since maybe the late 80s. But going way back, how about the Hacienda, Hennessy's, Orly's, The Temple Tea Room, The Park Inn, The Hut, The White Star, The Arrow, The Tip Top, The Triple X, The old original A&W (how about those trampolines out back, level to the ground over concrete pits, 25 cents for 15 minutes?), Erv's in Columbia Falls, Danny's Drive In, The Dairy Mart, The Jordan Cafe, The NuStlyle Sandwich Shop??? The list went on and on. Now, you can count the decent restaurants on one hand, and none of them are as good as any I listed above.

With any luck, I'll be flashing my tail lights goodbye before the end of this year. I"ll be back, but only for short visits to relatives. Adios.