Rainy night adventure on Lookout Mountain

The Rock City lights were beautiful.

When traveling, we either shoot from the hip or sometimes we use an itinerary.

OK, let’s explain it another way. Quite often we only start out with a highway or a particular direction in mind. Other times, we just start out and keep turning right (or left) until we arrive somewhere interesting. However, we have discovered that if we are going some place in particular, it works best if we have an itinerary.

That little piece of paper keeps us focused so that we don’t get too sidetracked.

On our recent weekend trip to Chattanooga, that itinerary let us do lots of things downtown without wandering willy-nilly.

When we arrived on Friday, our plan called for us to visit internationally famous Rock City so we could see the Enchanted Garden of Lights, a holiday display that features nearly a million lights.

That turned out to be quite an adventure when the overcast skies began to sprinkle.

Both of us had visited Rock City, on top of Lookout Mountain, before but Betty Lou had forgotten about the twisting road up the mountainside. “Oh my,” she exclaimed. “This is where we took the girls in two vans and we could smell my brother’s brakes behind us.”

“Wasn’t that in the Smokies?”

Maybe? Or maybe South Fork? Pike’s Peak?

Well, anyway. We made it up the mountain without incident and the sprinkling stopped ... for a few moments.

Despite being in January, the temperature was warm, but the footing was a bit treacherous as we headed down into the limestone grottoes.

“Didn’t I tell you about my fear of caves?” Betty Lou asked. Her face was about as white as H-haid had ever seen it.

“It’s not a cave, we’re just walking between limestone outcroppings. We’re in the open air.” I laughed and egged her on.

But all bets were off when we reached the narrow “Fat Man’s Squeeze.” We both understand why we need to diet this year!

Not soon enough, we were back on high ground viewing the beautiful lights, reminding us of the displays at the Opryland Hotel.

“Isn’t this beautiful? It looks like Opryland.”

“They don’t have caves at Opryland,” she responded. “Where are we now?”

While Betty Lou is a tad claustrophobic, the ol Hammerhaid doesn't cope with heights. What a pair we make!

It was then he realized that they were near the edge of Lover’s Leap. Swinging bridge fear then cut in. Rock City’s famous swing-a-long bridge is nearly 200 feet long! Don’t think either of us could have gone in that direction!

It was time for a quick retreat and a mug of hot chocolate in front of a crackling fire, thus ending that adventure. Betty Lou's driving skills were in high gear, or should I say "low gear" she was white-knuckling it all the way down that winding, steep dark road. None of my jokes made her laugh, in fact I think she was ready to push me off the next cliff. When we finally got back to our nice comfy room she laughed and was "so happy we did that! (of course we won’t take that road at night again!)

Good places to eat in Chattanooga

What was the first thing we noticed about the restaurants in Chattanooga?

The servers. Without only one exception, they were nice, friendly and provided excellent service. When you compare the dining experience to (for example) Nashville, Chattanooga’s servers were just superior. They didn’t prod or hurry you and they didn’t keep you waiting on your check forever.

Awesome.

During our weekend, we ate at several places and enjoyed them all. Well, actually that applies more to ol’ Hammerhead.

The Blue Plate

We can agree on our favorite: The Blue Plate, located on Chesnut Street near the Tennessee Aquarium. The restaurant is like an American diner with a contemporary twist. The Blue Plate, owned by Rob Gentry co-creator of the Big River Grille, serves comfort food made from scratch.

Our server, Casey, filled us in the restaurant’s eco-friendly approach. Everything is prepared from fresh ingredients obtained from local producers.

As a homegrown Chattanooga restaurant, The Blue Plate supports local farms and suppliers and serve the best from Bluff View Bakery, Niedlov's Bakery, Coldstone Creamery, River Ridge Farms and Stone Cup Coffee.

We enjoyed breakfast there Sunday morning. I had the ham and cheese omelet with hashbrowns. It was perfectly prepared and was neither bone-dry or rubbery. It was delicious with finely chopped ham and a liberal amount of cheese. The toast was incredible. You forget what bread from a fantastic bakery tastes like.

Betty Lou, predictably, had the french toast. She quickly proclaimed it “the best I have ever had.” And that was no exaggeration.

City Cafe

We tend to like restaurants that a fun and maybe a little crazy. That is why we delighted with Chattanooga’s City Cafe. It is a diner-style restaurant that’s opened 24-hours a day. It has a huge menu that covers just about any type of food from country to Greek.

Our server Sandy was ever so helpful as we scoured the menu that has more than 360 items including deli-style triple layer sandwiches to steaks.

Betty Lou was astonished at her owner of chicken cheese nachos. She declined to be photographed with the towering plate of food. I went tradition with a burger and home fries. The fries were thicker than steak fries and cooked with savory seasoning.

Good, filling food served in a fun atmosphere.

Desserts are the specialty City Cafe. They are custom-baked by “George.” Most of the cakes are a foot high and the variety is endless. Wow!

Big River Grille

Big River started in Chattanooga in the Riverfront district and is still serving up great food and beverages. Once again, our server was fantastic and would answer questions about menu items very candidly. We went for the pepperoni pizza and it was great. Crunchy crust, lots of pepperoni and cheese with a nicely spiced sauce.

Yep, Betty Lou could have lived there.

Sticky Fingers

Located near the Jack’s Alley stop on the Electric Shuttle, Sticky Finders is another homegrown Chattanooga restaurant that is known for having the city’s best ribs.

Betty Lou’s no fan of barbecue, but I made the call and loved the restaurants pulled barbecue with a variety of sauces. The pork was nicely smoked and was fresh and not dried out. Very nice. You could tell the restaurant is very popular with Chattanooga residents.

Betty Lou had the chicken fingers and didn’t particularly like them, but like I always say, “when you go to a B-B-Q joint you should eat barbecue.”

I enjoyed it.

Ever visit Chattanooga?

You’ve probably been to Rock City, Ruby Falls or the Tennessee Aquarium, but have you stayed downtown?

Since the 1990s, Chattanooga has reclaimed its downtown river front district and transformed it to a great place to visit.

With the holidays finally over, we got to slip away for a weekend and stayed at the Historic Read House on Broad Street downtown. It was easy to find and convenient to Interstate 24, which is often our path for our travels.

The Read House is now a Sheraton and a major renovation has been recently completed. What a wonderful job! The historic character of the hotel has been maintained with the addition of all those modern niceties we expect like high speed Internet access, plush comfortable beds and excellent service.

As usual, Betty Lou was dubious. Chattanooga didn’t sound like her kind of getaway. But one look at the hotel lobby started to sway her. It’s a real lobby, spacious with comfortable chairs ... a place where guests meet and converse.

“Just like the movies,” she said.

We had a beautiful room near the top of the hotel with a nice view of downtown. The room was nicely appointed with a comfortable couch, a big ottoman, two TVs, a desk and what Betty Lou described as “the most comfortable bed in the world.”

The hotel, like most modern ones, had a big workout area and a very, very nice indoor pool. It’s a no-edge pool with three waterfalls. There’s also a large whirlpool-spa style pool.

The hotel is also home to a big Starbucks (that’s a plus) and one of Chattanooga’s nicest restaurants, Porter’s Steakhouse. It’s a Chicago-style steakhouse that’s posh and romantic. The chef’s specialty is the Pepperloin, a whole-beef tenderloin marinated for 48 hours and covered with a peppercorn and herb mixture. (www.porterssteakhouse.com)

The Sheraton Reed House is also a very popular venue for weddings and receptions. The Silver Ballroom is beautiful with a classic look that takes you back to glorious times.

The rooms were quiet ... a fact we greatly appreciated. When we were there, a major college basketball tournament was underway. At least two college teams, Wayne State and Murray State stayed there along with their fans, but everyone was quiet and friendly.

One of the greatest advantages of the Read House is that has a stop on the amazing Chattanooga Electric Shuttle. Emission-free, the shuttle is quiet and handicapped accessible. You could ride from the Chattanooga Choo Choo to the Tennessee Aquarium FREE. The convenience was amazing.

We found ourselves hating to leave the Read House.

Betty Lou gave it her highest complement:

“I could live here.”

You should have seen her collection of real estate magazines!