Ask Jill

Our “no chain restaurants” pledge is not easy to keep. Even Jill, the sexy authoritative voice on our GPS, had a hard time finding a non-chain place for breakfast. South of Lumberton, NC, she finally gave us Beverly's Grill. The guy at AutoZone (where we stopped to make a purchase) said it was a good place to eat, but it was too complicated for him to tell us how to get there. Jill got us there, though – it was a couple more tenths down the very same road that AutoZone was on!

As you might guess from the photo, Beverly's was a gas! Chef Beverly and the waitress (both somewhat attractive, but could use a few more teeth) served us a great breakfast complete with some good grits. It was all on styrofoam, but good and plentiful. They refilled our coffees and gave us lids for the road. We gave them the story of our trip, and they wished us safe travels.

We're all set up at Crooked River State Park tonight, sitting on the office porch using their wireless. Dinner was Mexican - the seafood we've had our hearts set on for four years was not to be. St. Mary's Seafood House is closed and looks like it's out of business - booo!@%# The Bloody Bucket was still open, though - but that's a story for tomorrow.