GoodLifeFamilyMag.com JULY | AUGUST 2019 35 Starpower and Ed Kellum and Son can create an outdoor sanctuary that has everything you need to entertain or just hang out in your own oasis. 1 2 3 WISEMAN HOUSE CHOCOLATES Welcometochocolateheaven!Realchocolate fromorigins,suchasBelgiumandVenezuela, fresh ingredients like whipping cream and chopped fruits, natural flavors like crushed coffee beans, all combined with unique liqueurs and spices—don’t mind if we do. 406 S. Grubbs St.| Hico (254) 796-2565 wisemanhousechocolates.com   BLUE BONNET CAFE The menu has something for everyone, from salads and sandwiches to chicken fried steak and pot roast. They also serve breakfast all day and make their soups from scratch every day. Stop in and enjoy all your favorites. 5703, 211 US-281| Marble Falls (830) 693-2344 bluebonnetcafe.net/home LUCKENBACH TEXAS GENERAL STORE The general store, in existence since 1849, offers full meals, such as the Pulled Pork sandwichwithcoleslow,andtastytreatslike curly fries and fried cheesecake. 412 LuckenbachTown Loop| Luckenbach (830) 997-3224 luckenbachtexas.com VOGEL ORCHARDS The Vogel family planted the orchard in 1953, and today offers many of the same items that it has for years, including peaches, homemade cobblers, watermelons, and other assorted fresh fruits and vegetables.   They also offer the favored, homemade Peach Butter, Peach Butter Chipotle Sauce, and Blackberry Jelly. 12862 US-290| Fredericksburg (830) 644-2404 vogelorchard.com  ALAMO SPRINGS CAFÉ Along the small slopes of the serene Texas Hill Country, you’ll find this burger oasis known for some great grub. A place with burgers so good they’re featured on the cover of magazines. When it comes to taste, thisburgerislikethreeorfourburgersinone, and every bite is something better. 107 Alamo Rd. | Fredericksburg (830) 990-8004 thetexasbucketlist.com/2017/02/ the-texas-bucket-list-alamo-springs- cafe-near-fredericksburg   KOFFEE KUP FAMILY RESTAURANT Since 1968, Koffee Kup has been serving up well-renowned pies baked fresh in their own kitchen, with flavors from Coconut and Peanut Butter Meringue to Black Forest and Banana Blueberry. 300 2nd St. | Hico | (254) 796-4839 koffeekupfamilyrestaurant.com ting on their horses protecting their grounds. I’m sure those blur- ry visions had something to do with all of the sugar I had ingested at lunch in Hico.  As we enjoyed the beautiful scenery, we’d start thinking about our next feeding…also known as snack time.  Depending on whether we wanted salty or sweet would determine where we’d stop.  If it was a salty treat, we’d head off the road at Luckenbach.  Yes, there really is such a place, the same one Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson made famous in the song “Luckenbach, Texas.”  This blip on the map has one structure that houses the post office, a gift shop, and a small snack bar called the “feed lot.” The snack bar dishes out some incredible French fries. An entire potato is spiral cut and deep fried and when served looks like a winding potato chip.  We’d grab our fries and cold beers and head to the open-air seating area, complete with roaming chickens and, of course, a guitar picker.  It was almost an obligatory request for the musician to play the famous song.  The food and atmosphere all rolled into making this stop a little slice of heaven in the middle of nowhere.    Sometimes our mid-afternoon feeding would call for a sweet treat.  We’d forgo Luckenbach and start looking for seasonal fruit stands along the side of the road that were loaded with fresh peaches.  After trying several stands, we found our favorite at Vo- gel Orchards—a full working farm complete with a fruit stand, gift shop, and the world’s best peach ice cream (sorry Blue Bell).   When we left Dallas in the afternoon, we would wait to eat din- ner further down the road in Fredericksburg.  Although there are plenty of good restaurants on Main Street, one year we threw caution to the wind and ventured 13 miles off the highway into the back hills.  The road was so narrow and bumpy and the area so remote, my husband swore if we died no one would ever think to look there for our bodies.  But at the top of a very steep hill lay this burger oasis known as the Alamo Springs Café.  As we made our way into what looks like a grocery store from the 1950’s, we found only about 8-10 tables and a refrigerator case where drinks are served on the honor system.  The burgers are so thick and juicy they are served with a knife in the center to hold them to- gether.  The jalapeño cheese bun was the crowning touch.  If find- ing and eating at Alamo Springs is not a treat in itself, there is an added bonus if you are there around dusk.  The bats!  That’s right, thousands take flight just like the ones that fly out from under the Congress bridge in Austin.  After gorging ourselves getting down to the Kerrville area, my husband and I would have to come out of our food coma and remember the reason we were there was to pick up our kids from summer camp!  Two days later the children were retrieved and off we’d go back to Dallas and, of course, look for more eating adventures.   The trip home was generally on Sundays.  Once again, we’d stra- tegically plan what time we would leave to properly position ourselves for lunch.  Marble Falls and the Blue Bonnet Cafe was always the targeted destination. Now in business for 90 years, the Blue Bonnet Cafe is a watering hole for locals and a desti- nation for travelers.  There was always a line when we arrived on Sundays, but the wait was well worth it.  When the menus were presented to us, we’d all oooh and aahh over a full list of home cooking choices.  But like regimented soldiers our family always ordered the same thing every year.  My husband was the fried chicken guy; my daughter the pot roast queen; my son was the traditionalist ordering chicken fried steak; and I’d enjoy Thanks- giving in August with the turkey and dressing.  Our orders never varied, and we were never disappointed.  The food was always outstanding but almost paled in comparison to the pies this tiny kitchen dishes out. The meringue pies are a true work of art. The beautiful fluff stands at least 12 inches high and then is perfect- ly toasted, making each pie look like it has a light golden dome.   Even with the lure of the meringue, my very favorite is their pe- can pie.  These pies are filled with locally grown pecans and could easily win a blue ribbon at the State Fair.  You know the place is well known for their pie when you see the big sign advertising the Pie Happy Hour!  Just a note to remember, the Blue Bonnet Cafe closes at 1:45 on Sundays, which we sadly discovered one year after rolling in too late.    Eventually family and friends would make this trip with us to the Hill Country, not because they were interested in picking up our kids from summer camp, but to experience all of the stories we had told about the places we had been and the things we had eaten on the back roads of Texas. Cover Burger , Alamo Springs Cafe