Flight Training - July 2019 - 40

SCOPING IT OUT
Sometimes it's easy to find the right person to ask about local
eateries. The friendly ol' geezer at the terminal, the sharply
dressed woman behind the counter of the FBO, or the over-fed
lineman manning the fuel truck can always be counted on, but
it isn't always so simple. At Miami, Oklahoma, for instance (one
of 11 Miamis in the United States, of which five have airports),
the friendly woman behind the desk won't tell you for love nor
money where you should eat in town. She works for the city
government, and the city refuses to play favorites.
In a case like this, you need to find another pilot (look for
open hangar doors) or an on-field mechanic. The downside of
this approach, however, is that you risk being dragged into a
never-ending conversation that will eat up all the daylight and
leave you with no time to eat.
But more important than who you ask on the field is how
you ask.
Call it the last bastion of customer service, but the first
response to, "What's the best place to eat around here?" is
often "What do you like to eat?" or "What are you in the mood
for?" Now you've gone and done it. Try as you may, you'll
never get the conversation out of the hole you just dug. The
person you're interrogating is now focused on pleasing you,
instead of thinking about what's best locally.

BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS
Bistro 301 at the DoubleTree Suites
Can't go wrong menu item: No kidding, the fully loaded
grilled cheese sandwich.
Tip: If the flight was too long, room service will deliver.

Instead of asking where to eat, I've found it works better
to start with a more general question like, "Say, what kind of
food are you folks known for around here?" Unless they say,
"Haggis," it can lead into you smoothly asking, "Well, where's
the best place I can try that out?"
Of course, sometimes the locals don't recommend local.

CHAIN TRAPS AND OTHER PITFALLS
I want to scream. It's the third day in a row the airport manager
(at three different airports) has recommended Applebee's as the
best place in town to eat.
Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against Applebee's. I
like Applebee's. But we have one back home. When traveling,
I like to try out something different. Local eateries also showcase local art, local culture, and give you a chance to observe
and sometimes engage with the locals themselves-while chain
restaurants tend to be populated by passers-through. And, yes,
I appreciate the fact that I'm a passer-through, too, but I'm a
social anthropologist at heart.
It took me a long time to understand that really small towns
take great pride in being important enough to "rate" a national
chain-and of course, it's important not to insult your hosts.
The best face-saving move? If it's end of the day and I'm looking for a dinner joint, I just say, "Oh, I ate at Applebee's for
lunch." If it's noon, I say I ate there last night. "What else you
got here?"
Now, some of my more tech-savvy peers are quick to pull
out their smartphones and ask
Siri or Google for the bestrated local restaurants. But
there are several problems,
BOUNTIFUL, UTAH
the first of which is that Siri
is a drinker. Or at least mine
Kitty Pappas Steak House
is. She often navigates me via
Can't go wrong menu item: Sure, the steaks are
Scooby Doo back roads to vacant
good, but save room for dessert. "Momma" makes
lots. More important, however, is
them fresh. Every day.
the lack of tech adoption in many
Tip: You gotta pay in cash, they don't take that funny
small towns. If you look closely, a
plastic stuff.
top-rated restaurant in a place like,
say, Oxshoe, may have gotten its five-

40 FLIGHT TRAINING JULY 2019

JONATHAN CARLSON

The sad truth is that the vast majority of airports in the country
don't even have a vending machine, much less an airport café, so
the cross-country pilot who needs to refuel more than the airplane must look beyond the airport boundary fence to survive.
But how do you navigate to the best local eateries on the fly?
Luckily for you, it just so happens that I know a thing or
two about this subject. During my first season flying with
the Sport Air Racing League, I traversed 17,748 miles in
my Ercoupe, Race 53, traveling at a speed a little better
than that of a Volkswagen Bug. Needless to say, there
were a lot of meal stops, and I learned how to find
where to eat-and where not to. I'm fully qualified to be
your CMI: certified meal instructor.
Buckle up. Let's go.

Flight Training - July 2019

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