Are you a road-tripper? When my dad got a job at Rocky Flats in Colorado in the 1980’s, he and my mom loaded us up in the van and we drove out from Michigan – the road trip that started it all. Back in those days, my parents drove through the night to save hotel money. They turned one of the bench seats around to face the other, put a piece of plywood across the gap and laid out our sleeping bags. What can I say – it was a different time! #luckytobealive
Our jaunt to Wichita was not so bootstrappy (or risky). First, it’s only an 8 hour drive from Denver to Wichita, so no mid-trip overnighting necessary. Second, my kids played games on a smartphone and a tablet on the way. (They also read, a LOT. I can’t even look at a map for two minutes before I feel nauseated!) AND we are fortunate to afford a nice hotel room with a pool at our destination!
All told, we only had one full day in the largest city in Kansas. I enjoyed the vibe. We saw dozens of people scootering along the riverfront, we ate lots of really good food, and it’s an easy town to get around in. We actually hoped to do a lot of walking, but it didn’t feel like a great walking town “on the ground.” I think it will be, though, soon – lots of apartments and condos are going in, which means lots of people milling about in the heart of the city before long. Also, there are lots of available retail spaces in the main areas that you’d want to walk around in – when those fill up, it’ll be a really nice strolling situation.
Brunch
Let’s get down to brass tacks: we ate a lot of great food in our short visit! Thank you, internet, for showing us The Way. A special shout out to Real Advice Gal whose article Wichita Restaurants that You Should Try led me to HomeGrown at Bradley Fair, where we had an AMAZING BRUNCH. I am almost SICK that we don’t have a HomeGrown in Denver, but I heard they’re opening a third Wichita location soon, so who knows? Westward expansion on the horizon?
The star of the show was homemade pop tarts. We shared one cinnamon and one caramel apple which was served warm. So. Good. Our entrees were delicious as well – I had the salsa verde pork and egg bowl (eggs medium poached), my son ordered cinnamon roll French toast and my daughter got blueberry pancakes (three of them – the size of her face…). Everything was spot on, including the delicious side of locally sourced bacon (Yoder Meats). Bonus: you can join the wait list for a table ahead of time on Yelp!
Doughnuts
I look for doughnuts wherever I travel they’re the ultimate vacation food! Cheap, small – if you have a disappointing one, it’s not like you wasted $40 and a whole meal. Luckily we were guided to The Donut Whole by another good article on Wichita eats that I found on Pinterest. This doughnut shop doesn’t do fritters and filled doughnuts, and they don’t make raised doughnuts either. Instead, they offer a very impressive selection of vanilla or chocolate cake doughnuts with creative glazes and toppings like bacon, sprinkles, oatmeal cookie crumbles and more.
BBQ
I’m not a huge meat eater anymore, but sometimes I find it’s worth taking a risk on barbecue, and the offerings at Bite Me BBQ were SO good! This place was another internet find – if we’d just driven past it, I would have thought, “Dive bar – maybe not kid-friendly” but it was totally family-friendly even though it was dark and dive-bar-y inside. We all had sliced brisket and ribs and the mild house barbecue sauce. My son said this meal was the highlight of his weekend!
Road Trip Notes
If you find yourself driving from Denver to Wichita, here’s a few tidbits I think would be useful to know ahead of time:
Wichita has Aldi, Natural Grocers and (as of last week) Trader Joe’s! So if you prefer to do your own food shopping rather than eating out, your bases are covered. The Kroger chain there is called Dillons.
Try to plan a gas/potty/food stop for the Oasis Travel Center in Colby, Kansas. It has a REAL Starbucks, my friends! Also Tesla charging, a well-provisioned convenience store, a dog park and legit kids’ play structure, plus a Quizno’s and a Qdoba.
If your kids are old/tall enough (mine aren’t), rent electric scooters and ride along the Arkansas River Trail downtown. It looked so fun and a lot safer than trying it in Denver, where the streets and sidewalks are very busy.
If you have kids, get a road atlas! For any road trip! Assign your kids the job of finding when the next rest area will be. Maps are fascinating, and figuring out how to use one is an important skill even in the days of Google. This is the one we used for the drive.
Let me know if you find yourself in Wichita! And… let me know about other doughnut shops I need to trek around the country to try. #willroadtripfordonuts
What I’m reading: The Gifted School by Bruce Holsinger.
What my 10-year old is reading: My Life As A Stuntboy by Janet Tashjian.
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