One of the joys of traveling for us has been to sample a variety of foods. When we go to a place we like to eat the local foods. Sometimes this is to try something that is entirely new to us. But sometimes in our travels we return to a familiar place and have food that we have had before.

In 2018 when we visited Japan for the first time we made a pilgrimage to Hiroshima. Even thought it was at the other end of the island from where our daughter lived, we felt it was important for us, as Americans, to visit the city that was leveled by the first use of atomic weapons in warfare. There is much to see there and we made a point of ringing the peace bell and making our commitment to working towards the end of the use of such weapons of mass destruction. We visited the museum and read the stories of victims and survivors. We walked among the trees and marveled at how a city that had once been built around a huge war machine was rebuilt with a dedication to world peace. And we sampled Hiroshima Okonomiyaki. Okonomiyaki is an iconic Japanese savory pancake. Each region of the country has its unique style and Hiroshima Okonomiyaki is known throughout the country for its unique combination of ingredients including thinly fried egg, final chopped squid, and yakisoba noodles. We sampled the dish at a stall where we sat at a counter and watched our okonomiyaki being prepared. The first layer is a thin batter made with bonito flakes, Next piles of finely chopped cabbage is piled on, followed by temkasau, scallions, bean sprouts, thinly sliced pork, yakisoba noodles. It is all topped with fried egg, a special okonomiyaki sauce, and seaweed flakes. It was delicious and very filling. If we ever return to Hiroshima, we will make sure that we eat Hiroshima Okonomiyaki once again.

However, it is possible that our pilgrimage to Hiroshima was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. While I have found recipes on the Internet and may try one day to make okonomiyaki at home, we will always remember with joy our first taste of the treat.

Kansas City is a place where we have often been. And when we go to Kansas City, we are sure to have a meal of Kansas City barbecue. My favorite is burnt ends, but there are a lot of options at a good barbecue restaurant. Ribs and sausage and brisket are all good options as well. We have learned that if you pick the restaurant well it doesn’t matter if you are in Kansas or Missouri. In fact we’ve had excellent Kansas City barbecue in St. Joseph and other area towns. I usually save a bit to purchase a couple of bottles of Kansas City style barbecue sauce when we savor that treat.

There are a lot of different places where we associate certain foods with a particular location. Having grown up in Montana with easy access to the high mountain country, I am particularly fond of huckleberries. The location of huckleberry patches are deeply held secrets of the locals. Humans are not the only creatures that love huckleberries. If you gather the tiny treats you have to be bear smart. If you encounter a bear, which is likely because you are in bear country if you are finding huckleberries, it is always the best move to leave the patch to the bear and seek other places to pick your berries.

If you drive through the western end of Montana on the Interstate highway you might see signs that say, simply: “Best. Shake. Ever.” I’m not in a position to reveal the exact location, but the billboards are fairly easy to recognize. Now it is important that you know that there is a lot of false advertising on billboards. Much of what you read on the huge signs should be taken with a grain of salt. For example there is a billboard inviting travelers to stop at Montana’s best loved small town, a claim that is disputed by hundreds of other small towns in the state. Because we have friends in many Montana small towns, we are especially skeptical about the claim of this particular town. It is a nice town, but I don’t think that the locals love their town any more intensely than other folk in other towns. And there are lots of billboards that advertise goods and services that we have no intention of sampling. We can live our whole lives and have happy travels without needing to stop at casinos or stepping up to a bar with thousands of silver dollars embedded in it. So, if you travel, you can ignore a lot of the billboards and have a very find trip indeed.

However, if you do happen to find just the right spot for the Best. Shake. Ever. you might consider stopping. We often plan our travels so that we are able to camp in a particular spot near the place where they sell those shakes. It is our tradition to eat lightly that day to make room for a burger. I’m partial to the buffalo burger, but any burger topped with huckleberry barbecue sauce will not disappoint. And with that burger, I recommend that you sample the Best. Shake. Ever. I’m just saying that not everything you read on a billboard is hype or a direct lie. There are some billboards that simply say the truth.

Now it is possible that you might arrive in this place when it isn’t dinnertime. We’ve done that before. And it is possible to have a healthy lifestyle that includes, on a rare occasion, a milkshake shared at 10 am. We’ve done it and you could certainly do worse. But with a little planning you can arrange to be in the right place at the right time. However, if you do drive right by as we have done on occasion, look for Wilcoxson’s Ice Cream. Wilcoxon’s is a local brand, made in Livingston, Montana since 1912. Their huckleberry ice cream bars are definitely superior to imitation brands.

Wherever you travel, sample the local food. We do. And we find ourselves to be among the happiest people in the world.