| Are Ya Hungry? Thirsty?
By
Jack Kintner
So you just got out of the hills after a hike, or fishing,
or birding,and you’re ravenous. Where to stop?Well,
the Mt. Baker Highway has options, such as the two popular
stops in Glacier, Milano’s and Graham’s. But
here are a few more,some a little farther down the road
and two a few miles to either side.
Everybody’s Store A deli with a spectacular spread
of fresh products, Everybody’s Store “has the
best of Bellingham, or any city in the area, but it’s
all under one roof,” said proprietor Jeff Margolis,
who took over the century-old general store 30 years ago.
With 40 different kinds of cheese,four varieties of smoked
salmon,Italian and German sausages, including their very
popular Landjager, it’s a good place to stop before
you get into the hills to put together a picnic or provision
a day hike with some of their locally made energy bars made
of various combinations of chewy figs, crunchy hazel nuts
and addictive chocolate.
Everybody’s Store is two miles south on Highway 9
from the Mt. Baker Highway, which it meets just east of Deming.
360/592-2297.
North Fork Brewery It’s got the easiest phone number
in Mt. Baker country – 599-BEER – and serves
trademark east coast thin crust pizza that’s prepared
the right way, by throwing it into the air spinning like
a frisbee. “If you roll it out, you’ll crush
the dough and get something as chewy as a bagel,” said
Todd Urness, longtime cook at the restaurant.
Taking over a pound of pizza dough from the shape of a flattened
ball to that of a hubcap isn’t easy at first. Owner
Vicki Savage starts out new pizza jockeys on towels, admitting “I
still can’t do it very well,” as Urness throws
up a lump and spins it into a wide, thin platter with just
a flick of the wrist.
The pizza is served on an elevated platter in the homey
old wooden 45-seat brewery, its sign also proclaiming it
to be a pizzeria, beer shrine and wedding chapel. The trademark
beers made onsite can be bought to go by the jug.
The North Fork Brewery, Pizzeria and Wedding Chapel, 6188
Mt. Baker Highway, Deming. 360/599-BEER.
Cross Roads Grocery & Video Owners Lance Bailey and
Kristine Kager, gourmet cooks who operate their own catering
business in Bellingham, are open from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m.
seven days a week in the summer, and this year are hosting
the Sunday Farmer’s Markets in their parking lot at
7802 Silver Lake Road, right in the middle of Maple Falls.
Bailey drags his grill out for fresh sausages during the
event that runs from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. every Sunday.
Cross Roads Grocery & Video,intersection of Silver Lake
Road and the Mt. Baker Highway. 360/599-9657.
Frosty’s Inn This local Maple Falls institution, famous
for its prime rib, features a living history seminar everyday
at 9 a.m. as locals gather to swap tales. Owners Jennifer
and Ryan Stauffer hired Joe Dowell away from Lummi Island’s
gourmet Beach Store Café.
Along with the slow-cooked prime rib he has added sauces
like a cole slaw dressing his German grandmother passed down,
a new hollandaise sauce and clam chowder. This year Frosty’s
has added pizza to its menu as well. It’s open from
8 a.m. until 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and from 7 a.m.
until 10 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Frosty’s Inn, 7461 Mt. Baker Highway, Maple Falls.
360/599-2594
Holy Smoke Tavern The building was once St. Peter’s
Catholic Church, and you can still see the steeple over the
front door,but make no mistake, this is a tavern and children
are not allowed. The tavern was run by Ed Kooi for more than
20 years until present owner Chuck Smith bought it four years
ago.
It serves an 8-oz. top sirloin dinner for only $12. Hard
to beat that. Summer hours are Sunday to Thursday 10 a.m.
to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. until 1 a.m. The kitchen
is open 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and
10 a.m. until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Holy Smoke Tavern, 8794 Kendall Road, Kendall; 360/988-8333. |
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