"Texas Reds" and "the Swing Girl"

This blog is about some of our food experiences while on our recent trip. We had some great steak dinners---I'm told the beef must be bigger in Texas! Both nights we just picked a restaurant from the list on our GPS system in the rental car. The first night, we ended up at "Texas Reds" which ended up being a family owned business with a real "down home feel". We met the owners, a husband and wife team and he was in his jeans, cowboy shirt, hat and boots---like any self-respecting Texan should be. The walls of the bar were covered with all sorts of animal heads that people had shot with a big buffalo head front and center. They brought unshelled peanuts to our table for us to snack on while we waited for our food. We carefully piled the shells on the table top but looked in horror at the mess that the table across the way had left---they had just dumped all the shells on the floor. I couldn't believe any one could be so rude!!! Little did I know that this is custom in some parts of the country!

The next night, after going to the temple, we went to the "Old San Francisco Steak House". We were greeted at the door by a pretty blonde girl in a red satin dress that ended at the top of her legs which were covered in black fish net stockings. She had a flouncy little walk that even Josh commented on and I wondered, "Oh, no, what have we gotten ourselves into?" The dining room was a huge big room done in rustic wood with metal signs everywhere (like the baking powder ad signs from the early 1920's). Then there was a stage with a grand piano and a swing hanging from the ceiling. (There really are such places in the world?!) Apparently, the regular hostess was sick and so we were greeted at the door by the "Swing Girl". We were not able to see her in action as she had finished her routine for the night. I didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved since I had my teen age son sitting next to me and was across the table from my Stake President brother-in-law. The recorded music was WWII era which was fun and the live music was a old woman belting out different random songs in a deep throaty voice. She even dedicated Kermit the Frog's song, "It's Not Easy Being Green" to Josh who was wearing a lime green tie. (See what I mean about random?) Suffice it to say, it was an experience we will long remember!