Friday, March 12, 2010

Day Trip Recommendation

This week is Steve’s official spring break, but due to other responsibilities, we took Thursday/Friday for a little getaway trip and called that his Spring Break. It was lots of fun and gave us a chance to relax in a way that we cannot do at home.

We drove to Madison, Indiana, where we checked in at the Clifty Falls Inn at Clifty Falls State Park. We stopped by at noon to check on our reservations and they let us check in immediately. They even said that since they are running a spring internet special that they’d refund us $25! Now that doesn’t often happen, so we were impressed right away.

We had lunch in Madison at The Downtowner, where they serve delicious sandwiches and salads. The food was tasty and the service efficient. Then we visited some of the shops there. We were especially impressed with the The Birdhouse, an extensive bird and garden store, on Main Street. Their inventory is extensive and beautifully uncluttered and well-organized, making for easy shopping. We’re always on the lookout for good hummingbird feeders and books, and they had a good supply of both.

I was delighted to find The Little People’s Boutique, also on Main Street. They carry both classic and novelty children’s clothes, preemie to size 14, and each outfit seemed more adorable than the last. It was great to see babyish clothes for babies—not small versions of adult clothes. At the other extreme, they had matching slickers, umbrellas, and boots that would be a big hit with any child.

The state park is beautiful with extensive trails, some quite rugged, but pretty well-maintained. We drove around Thursday afternoon and hiked Friday morning. Without leaves on the trees, everything is so clearly visible that it was very interesting.

Our dinner was at Bistro One, an odd name for a restaurant with a Greek chef, but we’d talked to him that afternoon and his promise of the “best food in town” was verified by the owner of the bird store, though, tactfully, he did also mention Franco’s and the Red Pepper. We started with Saganagy, a hard Greek cheese that was brought to us in flames and was delicious on their warm rolls.

Our entrees, shrimp and grits for me and pork tenderloin medallions for Steve, were outstanding. The price included a salad and a skillet of pasta and vegetables—carrots, potatoes, and broccoli, a good value.

Nick, the chef, came out to see if we liked our food, and mentioned a nearby gentleman who eats there a lot. The man said he’s from Frankfort, but was working in Madison for a few weeks. Since Bistro One is only open Wed-Sat, he eats there every Wednesday and Thursday night. His highest recommendation was for the soups that we could have had instead of salad. He raved about every kind he’d tried and was looking forward to bringing his family to Madison some weekend just so they could eat at Bistro One.

On his recommendation, we ended with tiramisu, and it was just right—a light, tasty slice that met our standards.

The Inn served a good breakfast menu on Friday morning, and we especially enjoyed the “fried biscuits” that we’ve always loved in Nashville, Indiana. If possible, these were even better than we remembered.

When we left Madison, we took Indiana 56 along the river to Markland Dam and crossed back into Kentucky there. We had made the most of our “Spring Break” and came home refreshed. If you’re in the Cincinnati area, I’d really recommend a day trip or more to Madison. It’s charming and has fabulous food,and it's only about an hour and a half from Cincinnati.

2 comments:

Kenda Turner said...

Thanks for the heads-up--sounds like great eating and a fun road-trip. We'll have to keep this get-away in mind!

supermomdoesn'texist said...

Awesome! After Mexico, I was just thinking about how we need to take more day trips on the weekends. I can't wait to go to Clifty Falls!