Weston, Missouri : Yay for cool, small towns!
Trip Start
Nov 10, 2007
1
Trip End
Nov 10, 2007
Where I stayed
Weston, Missouri
Monday, November 12, 2007
We arrived in town about 11:00. We couldn't resist the rows of quaint storefronts and darling shops. There were many neat shops, but my favorites were Sundance Photo Gallery and the overflowing Ace Hardware. Sundance was especially fun because it is a gallery with many nice artists and photographers as well as a camera repair shop with a counter of antique photo equipment on display. We're Nikon people, but the old "Kodak" sign over the counter was a fun piece of nostalgia. One of the photographers displayed that I adored was a 1920s era guy by the name of Orval Hixon. You can see his work at this website (http://www.sundancephotogallery.com/).
After touring shop after shop after antique store, we were hungry. We headed toward the Weston Brewing Company (http://www.westonirish.com/history.htm) for a beer and a snack.
The staff we encountered at the brewery was unorganized and churlish. That didn't stop us from having a great time, but it was a bit odd to be told we couldn't use the bathrooms unless we were ordering food and to hear about the apple cider drink special from a waitress addressing another table nearby. However, it is a small town, not some fancy-schmancy corporate eatery with service standards, so we decided to enjoy the brisk air of the patio and a round of beer despite all that.
I ordered the O'Malley's Irish Cream Ale. I had previously found this beer at Stone Canyon Pizza in Parkville and fell in love with it. It's sweet, creamy, and nutty in flavor. Kelly had the seasonal pint, O'Malley's Festival Ale, a hoppy nutmeg, brown, beer that she and I liked very much.
For lunch, I ordered a bowl of the cheddar ale soup. I loved the tang of this soup, but the texture was thin, and the overall taste was just okay. Kelly ordered the rasher horseradish dunk, 3 yummy scoops of a bacon, horseradish, cream cheese mixture served with an assortment of Keebler crackers. I think anyone who works in an office and needs a new cheese ball recipe to bring to those monthly food fests should look into making this recipe! I also tried the yummy hot cider, made with cider and apple schnapps and garnished with a cinnamon stick. It's just the thing for sitting outside on a cool day.
The menu at the brewery is extensive. They have all types of wine by the glass for $4.00. There were many things I wanted to try and will be back to sample in the future. Some of the tempting items included Crab Cakes, Ham and Cheese Pye, The O'Malley Sandwich (corned beef, Swiss, and slaw on marbled rye with spicy brown mustard), the house salad with candied walnuts, and the Cajun grilled chicken salad.
Around the corner from the brewery sits an old German Lutheran Church. Up the steep stairs to the entrance is Pirtle Winery (http://pirtlewinery.com/). I'm not a wine connoisseur, but I sampled many wines I liked while at Pirtle. I found, doing some research when I arrived home, that Pirtle is famous for their Meads. If you go to this site (http://www.wine-compass.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabindex=7& tabid=11) and search for "Weston" (Alt+F) you can read a very informative review about the winery. Personally, I found the little shop charming. There were wine themed gifts in abundance, a crock-pot full of mulled wine that I only wish I had a recipe for, and ladies waiting for the chance to satisfy my every request to taste and sample the wines they have available. What's more, for a nominal fee ($4-6 per glass) you can take a glass of your favorite wine (or the whole bottle and/or a basket of sausage, cheese, and a loaf of bread for $15.00) out to the beautiful arched arbor just outside the church/store/winery that they refer to as "the wine garden." And we did! Four glasses and a whole bottle later (that's between Kelly and me, folks, not just me), we were friendly with our nearby diners and the bridal shower next door. It was a raucous, splendid afternoon spent enjoying the company of other visitors, autumn color, and agreeable beverages.
We were hungry again, had the other half of the street to explore, and about 30 minutes before the Fall Crawl was slated to begin. Flyers we had picked up along the way about the Fall Crawl said that local restaurants would be handing out samples, so we decided to do some more shopping and then sample our way around the town.
We found many more interesting shops during our second trip down Main Street. Another art gallery with some beautiful work by an artist whose name I never discovered, but whose beautiful white dog lounged in the galllery and appeared in a similar manner in several pieces around the gallery. The artist appeared to be family, but Kelly and I were unable to converse with her before the crowding in the shop drove us to exit.
Another shop we wandered into without knowing what we had found was the McCormick Store. It, too, was fairly crowded, so we left before finding the $.25 shot bar I read about later. Across the street we spied Father Christmas, so we raced across to talk and take photos before the crowds found him wandering around. Kelly and I both received candy canes we later used in some yummy hot chocolate.
After some hungry wandering in search of a restaurant giving away samples (or any restaurant at all), we finally decided to try one of the bars on the sidestreet where we had parked. We entered a bar called RJ's (I think) and found, to our dismay, that the only food they served were old bags of peanuts. We had a beer, since we were already there, and then headed back to Kansas City.
Pirtle Winery
Father Christmas
burning leaves in the street
To be continued....
Comments
So nice...
A daytrip away can be such a relief to your lifestyle routine. Sounds like you guys had a great time. I love the detailed account of your meals! Keep it up...
Louise Brown
TravelPod Community Manager