Winnemucca, population 7000, is the only city for miles around. It hosts most of the familiar fast-food restaurants and a few Mexican restaurants, BBQ’s, diners, and even one sushi place. For the seeker of food that reflects its place in the world, The Martin Hotel is where to go. It’s been open since 1898, when it opened to serve the Basque sheepherders who came to town seeking a meal like home. That’s what you’ll get here, more or less: the American West’s version of a Basque feast: an overwhelming meal served at long communal tables where the burgundy wine flows and spirits are high. The other place in Winnemucca (and now also in Boise) is the Griddle, a diner that starts serving breakfast at 6am, seven days a week. Waffles can be had either Belgian or small-tread, chicken-fried steak is breaded to order, and chorizo Benedict substitutes spicy sausage for Canadian bacon, topping it with chipotle hollandaise.
One morning at the turn of the last century, Lemuel Benedict shuffled into New York's Waldorf Hotel looking for a dish to cure his hangover. He asked for poached...
