Back from my I-85 roadtrip and 4 days later still suffering intestinal distress which so far I attribute to all the junk (I mean Roadfood) I consumed. Sumthin’ wern’t right summair.

Day one, the nonstop drive from Baltimore to Atlanta went very well with only a stop at Stamey’s BBQ in Greensboro. I think the chopped pork sandwich was $2.25, fries were 89 cents and the peach cobbler was $1.20.
The bbq was topped with red slaw and was a lot of meat for the price. I added lots of eastern style thin vinegar based sauce and was rewarded with a fiery kick long after the sandwich was finished. For the money this couldn’t be beat. My last visit here was about 30 years ago when I was a BBQ neophyte, but there on the property is a hugh pile of wood underneath the rusting canopies of what used to be the drive-in carhop area. I don’t know when the present building was constructed, but it’s as nice as can be. I do know Stamey’s has it’s origins in the revered Lexington pits and has been operating for something like 70 plus years.

Dinner in Atlanta was a spicy Shrimp & Grits at the Rock Bottom Brewery. Since I’m not a beer drinker, I had never been to one of this chains outlets. I did have the brewed on site Root Beer, which was no prize winner.

Day 2 gave me the opportunity to visit the Varsity in Midtown Atlanta. My last visit was about 7 years ago. I’ve always enjoyed it here, and this time I was very very pleased with the chili slaw dogs. I’d always remembered the slaw topping to be very finely chopped and not that plentiful. Maybe I’m confusing the Varsity dogs with someplace else, but I was very favorably impressed with the very generous slightly coarser slaw on these dogs. They were the most memorable single meal of the trip. Fries and rings were fresh and greasy, eat them while they are hot, and the Frosted Orange always satisfies. I probably would have gone for 2 more dogs if I wasn’t meeting up for a nice dinner.

The nice dinner was at Lenox Square Mall at a restaurant named Club House. There are 2 others, one in California and one in the Chicago suburbs. Portions were Cheesecake FActory sized and of comparable quality. Anyone else familiar with this operation?

Heading north on Day 3 my first stop was in Anderson, SC at the original Skin Thrashers. I had read that it was hard to find, well that’s an understatement, and the fact that the mansard roof was being repaired and there was no sign didn’t help. It’s in the middle of a long established neighborhood, and while I certainly would welcome a place like this in my neighborhood, the chili dogs were okay, good but nothing super special.

The stop I was looking forward to the most was the Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg, SC. And it was the most disappointing. The nicest thing I can say is that the quality and quantity of the ice was outstanding. Little jagged nuggets, my favorite kind. They are used in their famous super sweet iced tea, and way too sweet lemonade. I like iced tea with lots of fresh squeezed lemons and no sugar, ever, so I guess I was in the wrong place from the get go. I knew the tea was not my style, but I’ve never had lemonade totally devoid of tartness. I had an Outside Pork a Plenty. This is a chopped pork on a large bun topped with literally handfuls of onion rings and fries. The onion rings were good while they were hot, the fries totally tasteless, and the pork had a few large chunks that could have choked a horse. In my book this is one of those places that you have to experience once. It was a lot of food for the money, but someone will still have to explain to me how a pork sandwich alone is $3.75 and as an "A Plenty" is $6.75 while a plain hot dog is $1.25 but as an "A Plenty" is the same $6.75.

Day 4 was a Sunday, and so while I passed Lexington, I knew everything would be closed.

Final day started in Chapel Hill NC with a very good breakfast biscuit at a small regional chain cal,20,95046.020,1,6809,66.149.106.131
95065,95046,95046,2004-08-27 14:46:35,RE: I-85 Richmond to Atlanta and back – TRIP REPORT”