Friday, March 21, 2014

Country food in the desert?

For years I have driven past a restaurant along the 10 between Los Angeles and Palm Springs thinking that someday I gotta go there and try the food.  Well, that day finally arrived.  If you're familiar with the interstate route, then you know that in the city of Banning they have a KFC Buffet and a Starbucks drive-thru, but they also are home to Gramma's Country Kitchen.

If you read the Yelp reviews you think you are walking into a Cracker Barrel, but I wouldn't agree. I felt more like I was walking into a grandmother's home with all of the knick knacks on the wall, and the brick fireplace in the middle of one of the dining rooms.  They also have a display case showing off their homemade pies and cakes which I so desperately wanted to try, but my diet wouldn't allow.  Instead I was excited to see what was on the menu.


The general look and feel of Gramma's

I ordered the open faced meatloaf sandwich for my dinner.  It automatically came with mashed potatoes, but I had a choice for my other side and surprisingly chose carrots.  I say surprisingly because I really don't like cooked carrots, but these were extremely tasty.  They weren't overcooked and they weren't sickenly sweet, two of the things I hate most about cooked carrots.  Should I mention that I like baked carrots, as in carrot cake?  I digress.  The mashed potatoes were made from scratch and you could tell because they had whole potato chunks in them.  The meatloaf itself was thinly sliced (not sure how one does that) and sat on top of two slices of white bread and smothered in gravy.  It was exactly what I needed, though I realized on the car ride back to LA that the meal had been very salty and that I needed fluid and/or something sweet to take the salty flavor from my mouth.
Open Faced Meatloaf Sandwich with carrots and mashed potatoes.
 
My husband, on the other hand, decided to go with breakfast.  He selected an omelette with his two sides being hash browns and biscuits and gravy.  I snagged a bite of the biscuit and it seemed more cakelike than flaky, but I'm not complaining.  The gravy didn't seem to have much flavor though, and there weren't any sausage nuggets inside.
 

Biscuit with country gravy
 
 
As for the omelette, my husband told me it seemed more like a scramble than an omelette, but that it was still really good.
The Kitchen Sink Omelette (country ham, crispy bacon, tender beef, sausage, green onions & cheese)

If you want a simple, good meal and are driving on the 10 near Cabazon, I recommend pulling over at Gramma's.  I personally can't wait to go back once I'm off this diet and really get to enjoy the menu.  I'll be sure to post a new story when I do.

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