Blazing Through the Upper Midwest

'One last road trip' with a college-bound daughter included Cleveland, Lake Geneva and Indianapolis.

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Time is a funny thing.  

When you’re a child waiting for Christmas to come, it drags on forever.

When you’re watching your first born go through her senior year of high school, it seems to pass with an ever-increasing gusto, as if it knows how much you dread her leaving the nest for college.

Having taken many a solo dad/daughter road trip over the years with this soon-to-be graduate, I thought I’d ask her if she was up for one more before she heads out to take on the world.

Surprisingly, she indulged the old man and we planned an itinerary across middle America to what might not be your typical spring break locations but were filled with so much good food, good music and good times.

First up on the agenda for the road trip… we needed a proper road trip vehicle. 

Luckily we were able to get our hands on the most recent addition to the Chevrolet family, the redesigned Blazer. This silver, 308hp AWD sled, was packed with fun things like 4G LTE wi-fi, Apple CarPlay, and a surprisingly cool luggage divider that kept all of our gear from floating around the cabin on those rough Midwestern roads. The kid even called the Blazer the most comfortable place she ever took a nap, and there were plenty of naps on the drives.

Cleveland

We headed out from Alexandria early on a Saturday morning and after 6 hours of my bad singing and her loud snoring, we rolled into downtown Cleveland.

Home base for this leg was the Residence Inn downtown, which offered us the perfect start to the adventure. It’s easy to get to, close to everything downtown, and had space for us both to spread out after being in the car for so long. The hotel is right next to East 4th Street, which is one of the hot areas of Cleveland today, with restaurants from Michael Symon and Jonathan Sawyer, along a closed-off pedestrian avenue, with brewers, a House of Blues, tequila bar and more.

First stop was Butcher and the Brewer. An in-house butcher and brewery under the same roof was calling me and we were not disappointed to answer. Aged beef sliders with a mix of ribeye, brisket, and chuck for her, and a flight of corn-dogs for me proved to be a great start! (butcherandthebrewer.com)

After some exploring, we headed to Barrio for some of their spectacular tacos. Thick cut bacon, pickled jalapeños, and jalapeño lime shrimp were a few of the ingredients that brought a legit tear to the kid’s eye and even inspired an IG post of her kissing said taco. Definitely a good stop. (barrio-tacos.com)

The next day after breakfast at the hotel, we headed over to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Music has always been one of the closest bonds between my daughter and I so this was a must do for us. I could talk to her about Robert Johnson and the start of the blues, she taught me about The Weeknd, and somewhere in between we shared some AC/DC. A highlight of the trip for sure. (rockhall.com)

From the Rock Hall we went to the Ohio City neighborhood and TownHall for brunch. It featured healthy food including a non-GMO menu, presented in a way that doesn’t let you know it’s healthy. Organic, locally-sourced and pretty yummy bene-dicts, pancakes, and a full-service bar filled us up and got us ready to go for the rest of the day. (townhallohiocity.com)

Next up was the West Side Market. It’s one of the largest indoor/outdoor markets in the country, built in 1912, and now boasts more than 100 booths filled with fresh fruits, meats, baked goods, Czuchraj Meats (as seen on many a food show such as The Best Thing I Ever Ate). Grab some jerky and head up to the observation area above for a birds eye view of the action below, and a pretty cool photo op. (jandjmeats.com and westsidemarket.org)

Getting away for a much needed break from food, we headed to the Tremont neighborhood to see the “Christmas Story” house. You know the one — the Christmas cult classic with the Red Rider BB gun is now a fully-restored attraction and you can even book it for overnight stays! The house contains all the props (including the fra-gee-lay lamp), so that you and your kid can re-enact your favorite scenes. I’ll save those pics until blackmail is required. A fun detour, and a neighborhood worthy of a stop.

Finally, heading back downtown, it was time for dinner. Luckily, the running around had gotten us ready for our trip to Michael Symon’s BBQ mecca, Mabel’s. Mabel’s had juicy brisket, pork cracklins, and pork belly so good that my mini me attempted to steal it all from my tray. She also had the Polish Girl, a kielbasa with chopped pork and coleslaw on a roll and very good! A side of spaetzle and spicy cabbage rounded things off and gave me the illusion that I was finally getting some vegetables in. (mabelsbbq.com)

Lake Geneva

The Grand Geneva Resort (Wisconsin)

Hopping back into our sweet Blazer for a few more hours of checking out America’s highway system, we headed west to Wisconsin. Again, a surprising spring break choice perhaps, but hav-ing previously been to Wisconsin in the spring, I knew that this quiet little luxury retreat was just what we needed to relax. After short sleeves and warm temps in Cleveland, the snow from Chicago north to Wisconsin threw us a little, but our AWD Chevy kept us on track.

Arriving at the Grand Geneva resort, you immediately notice the Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired style. The beautiful, sprawling, stone building was built in the late 60’s and was originally Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Club Hotel, hosting acts such as Bob Hope and Sonny and Cher. The Playboy Bunnies have long since gone, and the resort is much more family-friendly now, featuring 355 guestrooms and suites at the Main Lodge, 29 Villas and 225 suites at Timber Ridge Lodge & Waterpark. 

We settled into our two-bedroom villa, where my once-little princess declared herself a queen and promptly claimed the upstairs level for herself. Yes, the huge suite came with barn doors opening on her balcony so that she may look down upon me when arising from her royal slumber. I wasn’t exactly suffering in my own first level room. I also had my own private bath and I was that much closer to the full kitchen and huge living area with fireplace. I gave into the queen and proceeded to relax with some of the charcuterie and a Spotted Cow beer that was graciously awaiting our arrival.

After the break, we headed over to the main resort to the Geneva Club. This add-on experience includes breakfast, afternoon drinks and hors d’oeuvres in the evening as well as special Club pricing on select beer, wine and cocktails. There was also a large fireplace to continue relaxing by while enjoying snacks and a drink.

Next up was dinner at the resort’s very own Geneva Chophouse. After enjoying one of Wisconsin’s famous Old Fashioneds, I was ready for a great steak. First, we started with the incredible seafood sampler that was filled to the brim with fresh oysters, King Crab legs, Lobster, and shrimp. Impressed, but ready for more… the young queen and I pressed on. The 18oz dry aged ribeye caught my eye and after watching the chef grill it to perfection in the open kitchen, I knew this would be incredible. She had the pasta with goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms, which she loved, and we shared a lobster mac and cheese, because we hadn’t had enough seafood! One of the best meals I’ve had.

The next day, feeling refreshed, the queen, who had grown up riding horses all her life, decided that a trail ride through the Wisconsin countryside was in order. Having not ridden a horse since I was in middle school, I was slightly less excited but I accepted her challenge. Upon seeing my 6-foot-2 frame, the horse also decided he wasn’t as excited, but he pushed through like a champion and we all enjoyed a great ride. This again was a highlight for me, and I was glad to do something my daughter loved with her. Her laughs at my expense were also something I won’t soon forget. The Dan Patch Stables were excellent and should be added to your itinerary! (danpatchstables.com)

Finally, for dinner we headed back into town to the newly opened Flat Iron Tap for burgers and a beer for dad. With over 100 brews, it was easy to find one I wanted. Being in Wisconsin, we started with an order of Brat Pops, Jalapeño and cheddar sausage battered and fried with mustard seed sauce, as well as some deep fried Wisconsin Cheese curds. Both were as unhealthy as they sound and equally as delicious. The main course of burgers and fries were very well done. Hers was a bean burger, keeping it healthy, and mine was a thick cut burger with a melted cheese skirt made from curds, all on a pretzel bun, not the healthy choice. Wisconsin, you are always a good time. (flatirontaplg.com)

Indianapolis

After another quick drive through a lot of flat land with large windmills, we made it to Indianapolis. After checking into our hotel, The Alexander, we decided to wander the halls checking out all of the art that fills the place. Very cool vibe in this place, lots of colors, mu-sic, and curated art in every turn. Super convenient to get the Blazer in and out to everything we wanted to see. (thealexander.com)

We took out a few bikeshare bikes from near our hotel and hit the road for the Indianapolis Cultural Trail Bike Tour where we were able to ride along this 8 mile urban trail that connects all of the city’s cultural districts along a wide paved trail, out of traffic’s way. This is a must do if you’re new to the city, you get to see so much in a completely relaxed manner. All of the neighborhoods along the trail have a cool “rebirth” vibe as many new restaurants and shops have opened up along this winding path. (indyculturaltrail.org)

Our bike ride took us into the Fountain Square neighborhood, where high end dining and almost 100 year old bowling lanes are neighbors, and live music and impressively filled vinyl shops are right around the corner. Being a competitive family, we checked out the Fountain Square Duckpin Bowling alley, which was a really good plan. It’s like time is frozen there, the lanes all appear original, scoring is manual, and the kid beat me I have to admit. Fun vibe there with lots of 20-somethings coming for a beer after work. (fountainsquareindy.com/ action-atomic-duckpin-bowling/overview)

After all the riding and bowling, we were off to dinner at Bluebeard from James Beard semifinalist Chef Abbi Merriss. Beautiful courtyard with firepit, and delicious shrimp and grits, spicy wings, green eggs and ham! Put this on the list when you visit! (bluebeardindy.com)

The next day began with a tour of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Home to the iconic Robert Indiana Love sculpture, a Van Gogh, and one of the largest Asian art collections. We wandered the huge collection for quite a while, taking advantage of the seats that encourage visitors to stay a while. (discovernewfields.org)

Next up was a good bit of shopping in the Mass Ave Cultural Districts we had passed through on the bikes. Great shops and spots to eat line the streets and gave a change for both of us to pick up some things before heading to Sun King Brewery for dad to sample some of the local brew. I loved the simple open brewery, excellent choices of beers, all well done in a friendly atmosphere. Also, inside the brewery is a restaurant/deli counter called Oca with over the top sausages, charcuterie, and cheeses that was such a good compliment to the beers, I didn’t want to leave. (sunkingbrewing.com and ocameansgoose.com) 

Before winding down our Indy visit, we stopped at the trendy brunch spot, Milktooth. Named one of the best Restaurants in America by Eater, Founder Jonathan Brooks has a hit here. The place was packed even on a Friday morning, which luckily made us sit at the counter with a view of the hard working chefs preparing the unique spins on brunch. No boring standards here, more like fried Swiss cheese polenta cake with sunny egg, horseradish sauce, pick-led apple, celery, cashew, and pesto. (milktoothindy.com)

Indianapolis has some fun things going on, good fun, places to hangout, and that whole rebirth vibe along the cultural trail.

Altogether, this trip was more than just the sum of its parts. Each city made a positive and lasting impression on us that will be remembered fondly. Hopefully the kid — sorry, young woman now — will travel back with her dad to check in on these places again someday!

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