A Lunchtime Road Trip
I first discovered Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard in January 2020. We were on our way home from Houston and decided to stop for dinner in Bastrop. Paw Paws Catfish House was open, and we walked into a virtually empty dining area. However, the food was delicious: crispy, tasty, tender. Too full to sit for an hour in our car during the drive home, we decided to take a walk on the deserted streets. Serendipity led us to a parking lot overlooking the Colorado River. Beyond us, to our right, was Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard, hovering just above the river. It looked like my kind of place, a bit tattered, a bit torn with a metal roof and weathered wood.
I told Michael, “We have to come back and have lunch over there. Someday.”
Then Coronavirus happened, and the world shut down, and the little restaurant in Bastrop slipped my mind. Recently an email came across my computer screen, and Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard appeared on my radar once again.
So, here I am with my friend Vivian, working our way down Highway 21 from San Marcos, thinking about lunch. It has been over a year—way too long—since we have had a friend’s day out, and luckily, she doesn’t mind driving an hour for both lunch and an afternoon of antiquing.
After taking one turn too soon, we turn down Alley B Street and arrive at the tiny parking area for the rustic shops and restaurants, tucked behind the buildings on Main Street.
Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard
We are five minutes early and Neighbor’s doesn’t open until 11 am, but the hostess offers to seat us at one of the high-top tables on the middle deck overlooking the river. We are the only patrons here, and I feel like a kid in a candy store, not sitting, but walking exploring, looking. Vivian joins me in my curiosity pursuit.
Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard feels like a party filled with laughter and music waiting to happen. Along with an indoor dining area, there are three staggered, stair-stepped decks, a very long ramp leading to the river’s edge that is full of picnic tables, and a rustic stage for weekend music with Adirondack chairs scattered out front. We don’t even look at the menu. The thought of people and parties and music and laughter make me forget that we came here to eat.
When our server arrives, we quiz her about her recommendations and what is popular.
“Our pizzas are always popular and wonderful,” she says, and then goes on to tell us about the sandwiches and a suggested appetizer.
Lunch
Except for the pizza, we take her three recommendations and also order two glasses of Pinot Grigio. Neighbor’s Caviar arrives, made with tomato, red onion, bell peppers, black-eyed peas, and basil-lime vinaigrette. If it weren’t for the fried tortilla chips that accompany this appetizer, it is healthy. I make it less so with a sprinkling of salt on each serving. It still tastes fresh and guilt-free. We munch away.
When our sandwiches arrive, we dig in, and I am shocked, surprised, and delighted. My Almost BLT is on toasted fresh wheat bread, oozing with melted mozzarella, layered with the requisite tomatoes, moistened with basil aioli, and loaded with a thick layer of—CHOPPED BACON.
Chopping is a brilliant idea—easier to eat, and there is bacon in every bite. Why didn’t anyone ever think of this before? Why didn’t I think of this?
Vivian’s Lunch Lady also contains a layer of chopped bacon, in addition to sliced turkey, pepper jack cheese, avocado, and spinach. Both sandwiches get two thumbs up, and I can’t wait to bring Michael here.
Someday, when I’m no longer fearful of crowds, and Covid-19 is nothing but a bad memory, we’ll come for the music too.
To learn more about Neighbor’s Kitchen and Yard and to see their menu click on the link below.
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