Gorging in Gatlinburg

Sorry for the interruption in the normal sequence of quiz questions, literary notes, pennyworth gabbing, etc., at this blog. The reason for the hiatus was our long weekend in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. A friend periodically lets us stay in his mountainside quarters not far from town, and we dearly needed the respite.

The least I can do to make amends is offer a brief report on where we dined, for your possible future reference. For lunch on Saturday we discovered The Pear Tree Café (463 Parkway, Gatlinburg; (865) 430-8082). While my wife was enticed by the catfish sandwich (strange—she almost never wants catfish), I was in meat mode and so chose the hamburger on a Kaiser roll (with cheese). Suffice it to say it was approximately the heftiest burger I’ve ever enjoyed, and one of the tastiest. Sherie polished off her catfishwich; whenever she polishes off any meal, it’s a compliment to the chef.

For dinner that night we went for the blessings of the brook at the Smoky Mountain Trout House (410 Parkway—sort of across the street from The Pear Tree; (865) 436-5416). Its menu lists more than a dozen trout variations. I don’t recollect the exact names of the items we ordered, but both were good.

The Greenbrier Restaurant (www.greenbrierrestaurant.com) has become our annual must-visit dining venue for its steaks. This trip, I was served probably the finest New York strip I’ve ever eaten; Sherie opted for prime rib (which I would rate in the top five I’ve ever sampled, but not No. 1) (I’ve forgotten now where I found prime rib No. 1; it was awhile ago). Only recently, I learned The Greenbrier has a resident ghost; see my history/mystery blog, http://mysteriousexpeditions.blogspot.com.

Incidentally, we’re by no means rich. This was a special occasion; we were treating ourselves to what was actually Sherie’s belated birthday weekend getaway. (And the lodging was free. Thank you, Tim!)