BBQ's, Brews & The Blues (Summer Roadtrip 24)

This place is nothing more than a tourist trap!  As soon as we arrived in Branson, Missouri, we both turned to each other and immediately asked if we took a wrong turn and accidently wound up in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.  Both places will make your head spin !  The only reason we booked two nights in Branson was to see Dean Z in concert at the Clay Cooper Theatre.   Who is Dean Z ?  If you put him side-by-side with Elvis Presley.....they'd be identical twins!  He looks like the King.  He sounds like the King.  His show is worth seeing again and again.  That's why we're here in Branson.....to see the King!     Long story short....right after arriving in Branson, we received a phone call saying our Dean Z show - scheduled for the following day - was being canceled because Dean was sick.  Are you kidding me? Suck it up, Dean!  We traveled over 1,000 miles to see you!   This was supposed to be the highlight...

Kansas City has been the missing piece in our BBQ travels.  We've been through the Carolina's.  Waited in long lines throughout Texas.  And feasted on it around Memphis.  It was finally time to hit up KC for some of their famous mouth-watering burnt ends! Unfortunately, on this trip, we didn't plan to stay in Kansas City very long.  The only two things we really wanted to do here - eat KC BBQ and see the Royals play at Kauffman Stadium .  So we decided we could do both while staying only one night in the city. Luckily, the Royals baseball game was scheduled for the afternoon (1pm)....giving us some free time in the evening to go out for a barbecue dinner and find a local brewery.  The game today featured two of the top teams in the American League (KC Royals vs. NY Yankees).  The only complaint we had all day was the excruciating heat at the ball game.....a 105 degree heat index!!!   Of the 30 teams in major league baseball, Kauffman Sta...

Who knew we would end up here?  We just happened to start a conversation with someone in Kansas City this morning and mentioned we were heading to St. Louis.  They recommended breaking up our long four hour drive with a stop at Warm Springs Ranch .  This is the official breeding facility of the Budweiser Clydesdales.  There was only one available tour scheduled for today.....and it would require breaking the speed limit to get here on time.  Exactly two hours from Kansas City, our behind-the-scenes tour of Warm Springs Ranch  would be a great leadup to our tour of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery tomorrow in St. Louis.   A free, cold Budweiser awaited us at the ranch!  Did I mention it was free ?  If you decided to turn down your free beer....they actually charged you $3.50 for a bottle of water.   There was only six people (including us) in our tour group.....giving us lots of opportunities to interact with the horses, talk to our t...

I visited St. Louis several years ago on a summer baseball stadium tour.  My friends and I attended a Cardinal's game at Bush Stadium and then toured the Budweiser brewing facility.  On that same trip, I also got to experience the claustrophobic ride to the top of the St. Louis Arch.  Never again! This time I planned to avoid any claustrophobic activities and spend more time eating and drinking.  Our first stop was the Anheuser Busch Brewery .  Jenesa wanted see where they make her favorite beer -  Bud Light Lime - so we booked the BeerMaster Tour at Anheuser Busch.  The best part of this tour?  We visited the Finishing Cellars and enjoyed a sample of the freshest beer you'll ever taste, poured directly from the finishing tank. St. Louis is known for their BBQ ribs.....so we headed to Bogart's Smoke House .  This corner joint was right down the street from our AirBnB in the historic Soulard neighborhood of the city.  One of the to...

Saving our last three nights for Memphis was probably a smart thing to do.  There would be a lot to see and do on Beale Street and Elvis Presley Boulevard!  We also made sure to schedule a stop at the famous Peabody Hotel to see the ducks!  Quack!  Quack!  And, if that wasn't enough...we planned to venture down to Tupelo, Mississippi to visit the birthplace of Elvis.  Thank you, thank you very much ! Our first item of business in Memphis was to snag a prime spot to see the marching ducks at the Peabody Hotel .  This was, unfortunately, something that we missed during our prior visit to Memphis.  The Peabody Memphis is known as the "South's Grand Hotel" and toes the line between elegant and inviting with 150 years of history. The story of the Peabody ducks can be found here ( link ).  We arrived 45 minutes early for the 5pm duck march - where they proceed from the fountain through the lobby to the elevators and back to their rooftop penthouse....

  When I was younger, there were only two things I wanted to be when I grew up - a professional baseball player or the second coming of Elvis Presley!  I guess I'm not the first kid to dream big and, unfortunately, wind up a public school teacher....but I was definitely a fan favorite at my high school talent shows !   Our first trip to Memphis in 2004 was short and sweet.  We combined a few days in Memphis with a few more in Las Vegas....the ultimate Elvis Presley vacation !  It was just enough time to tour Graceland, visit some Memphis attractions, and get shuttled to Marlowe's BBQ in a pink limousine!  I was like a kid-in-a-candy-store during that trip.   Fast forward twenty years....and I was hoping to feel the same way on this trip!   On this trip we tried to save a few bucks by booking an Airbnb for our first two nights in downtown Memphis near Beale Street....and then splurge on a room at the new Graceland Guesthouse & Re...