Gas Station Gourmet Meal

On a spontaneous whim, we decided to drive from Las Vegas to San Francisco instead of fly.  B had read that there was still snow in Yosemite and thought it would be nice to surprise the kids with their first snow sighting.  We broke our trip in Mammoth Lakes after 5 and a half hours. The next morning, we continued on to the Bay Area, which was another 5 hours away through Yosemite National Park.

 Tioga Pass is the road that cuts through Yosemite National Park

When the innkeeper at Mammoth Lakes learned we were continuing on to San Francisco, she said she heard Tioga Pass was closed, and to expect a long drive ahead. Tioga Pass cuts through Yosemite National Park and is the quickest way to get from Las Vegas to the Bay Area. 

If the Pass was closed, we'd have to drive up  north and pass another highway, and if that was also closed, we'd have to go even farther north and go through Lake Tahoe. That route would add 3 hours more to our already long drive.  I'm usually very good at planning trips in detail, but I didn't bother for this particular road trip.  I had general directions in my iPhone anyway, and how complicated could it be to just drive west?

It turns out Tioga Pass is only passable from May to November each year.  People who plan a drive through the park during this time of the year monitor the weather very closely because sudden storms prompt the park authorities to close the road. Did we even know that? Of course not--we were being spontaneous, remember? This was mid-May, and it seemed like a beautiful clear day. But inside Yosemite National Park, a mini snowstorm was developing.

At a place called Lee Vining, right before turning left into Tioga Pass, a highway sign confirmed that the Pass was closed.  There was nothing else in sight except for a Mobil gas station on the corner, and the picturesque Mono Lake across from it. We decided to stop at the Mobil mini-mart to ask about possible re-routing options.

We walked into a lot of excitement at the mini-mart.  "You guys are sooo lucky--they just opened the Pass five minutes ago," the man at the counter greeted us.

With a sigh of relief we decided to take it easy, look around and maybe grab some lunch before driving on. 

I checked out the menu--hmm, this was expensive gas station food. We had just had a big breakfast a couple of hours back, maybe a pizza slice or two would be okay.

Just as I was about to order,  B, who had just come from the restroom, said he wanted to order the World Famous Fish Tacos. Huh? Well, okay, he must be hungry. I'll just order something the kids can share too, like the St. Louis Style Baby Back Ribs for $18.95. I wasn't really hungry so I didn't order anything for myself.

We walked over to the dining area near the glass windows facing Mono Lake. On the way there, I admired the watercolors of Yosemite on the walls. I particularly liked this one below except that it was a print and not an original watercolor.

Then our food came. Gasp! When did mini-mart food look like this?

This was the "famous fish tacos" dish that came with a side of mango salsa and refried black beans. I was surprised at how delicious this was, the flavors and textures familiar at the same time, unusual.

The kids attacked the ribs, which were meaty and falling-off-the-bone tender. G loved the potato salad and wanted to order another serving. C enjoyed the "stringy stuff" and in between mouthfuls, kept asking me what it was (she eventually went back to the kitchen and found out it was spaghetti squash). We enjoyed every bite and licked both platters clean.

 

Maybe I'm being too gushy here, but remember we were in a gas station in the middle of a vast expanse of nature with no other establishment in sight.  I really didn't expect this type of food.

It was only when I kept saying I couldn't believe how good the food was that B casually said, "yes, this place is supposed to be quite famous for the food, that's why I wanted to try it." Whaaaat?! He knew? We should've ordered one dish each, if only to try as many dishes as we could!

A number of framed articles dating back to the early 2000's fill the hallway walls at the back of the store, and B had read them on his way to and from the restroom. People who know about the "Mobil gas station mini-mart", which is really named "Whoa Nellie Deli",  make the effort to drive an hour or two from their "nearby" homes to get here. Others who make the cross-state drive regularly also make it a point to stop here for their gourmet fix, and tourists who do some research will be on the lookout for it.

But for us, discovering it was pure serendipity.

We were all happy after this delightful surprise of a meal and we were ready for the upcoming five-hour drive to the Bay Area.   I don't think we'll ever find ourselves on this route again, so I'm glad that the food gods lead us here. I'm also thankful that B had to use the restroom. 

The Mobil minimart looks over Mono lake

Our luck continued. Tioga Pass was passable and we made our way through Yosemite in the mild snowstorm without a hitch. The park was covered with newly-fallen snow, thrilling the kids to no end.  Our road trip was full of exciting surprises that if I were not one of the two-person non-planning committee, I would've thought that this road trip was planned with much effort and thorough research.

Tioga Gas Mart / Whoa Nellie Deli

info@whoanelliedeli.com or 760-647-1088
P.O. Box 253 or 22 Vista Point Road
Lee Vining, CA. 93541

Las Vegas Natural History Museum

This is the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, whose driveway we drove into, by mistake, while looking for the Lied Discovery Center. They are across each other on Las Vegas Boulevard North.

The museum has different sections but the most interesting part for the kids was a recreation of King Tut's tomb. They told me they knew all about Egyptian tombs and embalming because of the book, Beyond the Grave, Book 4 of the  39 Clues series.

G was happy to point out things she knew about, just like these Shabtis here below.

Both G and C love to read and the 39 Clues is one of their favorite series (there are 11 books).

Even if it's a small museum, there's still lots to see and fascinating things to learn about. We spent about 3 hours here.

After going through all the three floors and having a vendo-chip snack in between, we went back again to King Tut's room and went through all the displays all over again.

 
Our last stop was the Young Scientist Center, beside the dinosaur display, where you could play with the displays.

G took notes and wrote down her impressions of everything she saw. C liked the more interactive displays.

I had no idea this place was here, so I was happy to have discovered it by mistake.

Las Vegas Natural History Museum
900 Las Vegas Blvd N.
Las Vegas, NV 89101
(702) 384-3466

http://www.lvnhm.org/

Lied Discovery Children's Museum, Las Vegas

The kids were looking forward to visiting the Lied Children's Discovery Museum. While driving to this place the day before, I erroneously drove into another driveway and we ended up at the Las Vegas Natural History museum. We went there instead. They enjoyed that, but their hearts were set on Lied (pronounced LEED) so they made sure I drove into the right parking lot this time.

Lied is located north of the strip. I was actually surprised that Las Vegas had something like this for kids. Our first experience with a "Discovery Center" was in Honolulu many years ago. The girls absolutely loved it (and still do), so when I found Lied online four  years, I knew we had to visit.

The girls didn't remember being here in 2008 (that's one of the main reasons I write this blog--I want them to remember where we went--and of course I want to remember too!). Here they are four years ago...

They're growing faster than I can blog.  Stop growing until I catch up with the posts, guys!

I appreciated this plumbing display. You pretend to be a plumber and connect the pipes. So that's how they are connected inside the walls! Now if only they also showed how the drains work.

 I can't seem to find this wall niche contraption for the washing machine here in Manila.

There's an airport set up here too. They get to push suitcases through security.

The bubble stations hold their attention for a really long time. I have to remind there that there are other things to see and do.

This display about food was useful for me.  You choose food cards and put them on the plates, and the calories are added up on the screen. It shows you the calorie effects of choosing your food wisely. I wanted the kids to spend time here,  but they ignored me.

This picture above is, for me, the most useful display for adults in the whole museum. Based on this, a standard restaurant serving in an American restaurant should be able to feed a whole family of four.

On one side of the second floor, there's an art room offering a daily craft. The girls love being creative so they plopped in and did the featured craft--a dragon head made out of scrap colored paper. After twenty minutes, they were back out exploring.

This place is a bit worn, but it's still amazingly fun for them. Kids, unlike adults, don't really notice aesthetics as long as they can play.  But look, a  brand new center is going to open in November and in a new location too.

I thought at 11 and 9, they would've outgrown their Discovery Center stage, but they still loved it. They always find something new, or they just play with something in a different way.  This is a fun way to entertain the kids in Las Vegas, without having to be near the casinos. Remember too that the Natural History museum is just across the street.


Lied Discovery Children's Museum

833 Las Vegas Boulevard North

Las Vegas, NV 89101

(702) 382-3445