High Sierra Topix

after finishing the Muir Trail in the 80s and early 90s, we always went to La Casita in Bishop - highly recommended to us a former Mexican restaurant owner from Sacramento, who told us in '89, just a day before we finished, that la Casita was the best mexican restaurant he knows.

huge portions, tasty

we went back there last summer but it was closed even though according to the hours posted on the door it was supposed to be open. Is that place still open?

The Other Tom wrote:Breakfast at Nicely's in Lee Vining.

been there many times - last time in July 2008

this photo is from 1989 when we ate breakfast there before the Yosemite bus picked us up

A nice big fat cheeseburger and fries, preferably at a hole-in-the-wall somewhere near where I came out, and a large Diet Coke (hey, gotta have *something* sorta healthy ). And pie. If they have pie, it's heaven. Especially with a scoop of ice cream on top, if it's an apple pie or something that will benefit from it. Oh man, I been out for a while, I just drool at the thought...

I recall there was a pretty good thread on the old forums (before they were hacked) listing everyone's favorite post-trip dining destinations. Must go destinations on your way home from a trip.

Let's see if we can recreate, and maybe add to it.

I'll start.

Lakeshore Restaurant & Saloon (Lakeshore Resort)
Lakeshore, CA - on the north shore of Huntington Lake
Fantastic burgers, clubs and more. Great saloon with a nice beer selection. FAST service, decent prices.

- Whoa Nellie Deli (aka Mobil Station)
- Usually don't eat fast food, but In-n-out can be a nice treat on the drive home

There was this thread, which still exists: viewtopic.php?f=26&t=4074" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Not sure if you might want to merge them, Eric.

rlown wrote:There was this thread, which still exists: viewtopic.php?f=26&t=4074" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Not sure if you might want to merge them, Eric.

Nice catch, Russ! Embarrassing... Although, there was a much longer, more comprehensive thread that was lost that I was thinking of. But this will do!

Threads have been merged.

This has varied over the years: Back in the day it was El Charro and Bishop but they closed years ago and I've yet to find an east side place I consider a "go to" spot as much as I did El Charro in their heyday. Other favorites: Moon's (just closed a few months ago) (steaks, pasta etc.), Quincy; Bassetts Station (great burgers), Jct of Lakes Basin rd and 49; Ikeda's (legendary burger burger place, great shakes too, and a store attached to it which is sort of like Trader Joes/Whole Foods meets a farmers market--must do for anyone traveling I-80), Auburn; Tioga Pass Resort (noted above: nice food, good pies, way above average beer selection in the 'fridge and unusually good prices for that beer); Whoa Nellie (noted in earlier posts); Jolly Kone (noted in earlier posts); West side: Mountain View Pizza, Squaw Valley (the Squaw Valley on 180 W of Kings Canyon). I don't tend to do too many west side spots, though because I live in Fresno and it isn't too far to simply get home. I am very much interested in trying out that Lakeshore Resort spot on Huntington, though, given that my family and I hit 168 destinations more than any other in the Sierra owing to its ease of access from here--very glad you posted that, Eric.

I prefer to go to the nearest store and buy a large tub of fresh strawberries and a cold beer.

There is a good BBQ in Walker - I think it is called Mountain View. It is closed on Mondays. It is just on the south edge of town (what little town there is!).

This spring we did a trip out of Yosemite Valley and ate breakfast at Awahnee. Believe it or not, ordering off the menu at the Sunday Brunch you can get a great meal for under $20. You can also get $1 beer at the store in Curry Village and pretty good taco salads.

But food is not my main thought when I get off a long backpack. A hot shower is my first priority. You can shower and swim in the pool at Curry Village for $5. The hot springs on Buckeye Creek is also nice. The public swim pool in Bishop is great as you drop down into 100-degree heat! I now always bring my swim suit on all backpack trips and find all sorts of public swim pools with free showers. A shower and cold swim definitely makes staying awake on the long drive home easier.

giantbrookie wrote:I am very much interested in trying out that Lakeshore Resort spot on Huntington, though, given that my family and I hit 168 destinations more than any other in the Sierra owing to its ease of access from here--very glad you posted that, Eric.

Yeah, I'm amazed I've driven right by it so many times without checking it out. It's really worth a stop.
Usually, if anything along the 168/180 to the Fresno area persuades me to stop, it's a fresh peach milkshake at Hungry Hut in Shaver (forced hikerduane to have one with me last summer). But the milkshakes haven't been quite as good in recent years, so guess I have a new favorite stop.