When I last sat down to write what I thought would be one of those informative posts, we got the news about Chris. Nothing else seemed very important at the time. One thing my friend always exemplified for me was a sincere passion for life. Enjoy the things you love with those you care for and live it to the fullest.

Kudos to the Arkleys for putting out such an awesome spread at the memorial service. But as vegan-like we may try to be at home, I get passionate about a good steak once in a while. Some of the best I’ve ever had dining out have been at the AA Bar and Grill, and I didn’t get mine the last time we passed through Eureka

Considering we don’t know when we may make it back to the Lost Coast again, we headed to an old favorite for a couple gin and tonics. With a yearning for a good piece of char broiled meat, I quickly jumped at Rene’s suggestion we get something to eat. We settled for a surf and turf option with fried shrimp and “a bit of both” – onion rings and french fries.

The name alone first drew me to this dark friendly bar in the shadow of the Humboldt County jail. I just always liked the idea of getting drunk at a place called the AA.

Back in the day, it was within walking distance from home so that was a plus. But it was the steaks, service with a smile, and the fact that the AA has the only functioning shuffleboard table in town that kept me coming back.

Location and outward appearances alone may scare away some from even entering the Double A, as some prefer to call it. But where else can you get an excellent steak and a good stiff drink while enjoying a laugh with friendly locals?

I always wanted one of the AA t-shirts with a logo resembling that of Alcoholics Anonymous. Once again, however, I passed up the opportunity, unable to decide between that and their new shirt with the slogan Best Piece Of Meat in Humboldt County.

Legend has it that one could once get a free drink and half off your steak on the day they got out of jail at the Humboldt Hilton across the street. I for one don’t ever care to confirm that legend.

While enjoying our meal, Rene observed an older couple having a great time. Determined to find out their secret to happiness, she joined them briefly to ask. Turns out they were Ambrosini cousins – a name that goes way back in Humboldt Heartland, kinda like the AA.

There is simply not enough time to enjoy all the barbecue goodness Texas has to offer. From the big cities and fast highways to every sleepy little town and winding FM (Farm to Market) road, the savory smell of smoking meat can be enjoyed as it radiates from rickety shacks and strip malls alike. It even overpowers the ever present aroma of Texas oil country.

Last year in Luckenbach, René promised me a dinner at Hondo’s in Fredericksburg. This year, she kept her promise. Hondo’s is an informal, self-serve restaurant with a menu sure to please any discriminating taste, and yes, they have BBQ. Place your order and have a seat on the shaded patio sipping a cool tea until your pager blinks. We might have sat inside and stuck around for the live Music if we weren’t taking a break from the Hat Festival.

After seriously considering the brisket, I opted for the special – “a generous portion of whatever David’s been smokin’ all day” – and was informed that the 2 lbs of ribs came just like that, just ribs. So I added some fried onion strings, and was reassured by a sincere “Mmmmmm…” from the woman taking our order.

I traded a bunch of crispy strings for for some of René’s succulent grilled Mahi Mahi salad. There was no way I could eat so many ribs without some fresh greens. And fresh they were.

I would have certainly hurt myself even trying to finish the big ol’ basket of ribs, so leftovers were in order. With some grits and greens topped with remaining onion strings, I got tasty BBQ two days in a row – bonus!

After passing far too many BBQ joints – with names like Fat Boy’s and Bubba’s BBQ – over the next couple weeks, we found another gastronomical treasure at Pop’s Pit in Brookshire, Texas. Pop’s is old school BBQ at it’s best, but these days you’ll even find traditional places like Pop’s Pit on Facebook!

Pop’s Pit is home of the Heart Attack sandwich, chopped beef and sausage. But after ordering the ribs, I spotted the brisket sitting on the counter. It comes sliced or chopped, on a bun or in a bowl, and it looked – and smelled – too good to pass up. I opted for the sliced beef sandwich, and got a funny look when clarifying our side order of beans and slaw. After all, René had just ordered the Suicide Spud wit the same sides, to split. “She’s gonna eat all that?” the woman asked. “No” I said with a grin, we were splitting the side dishes. “I’s gonna say…” was her only reply as she turned to shout our order to whom I presume had to be Pop.

The woman’s reaction was clearly understandable once our food was ready in the walk up window. Another bonus for me: the sausage and chopped beef that comes with the monster baked potato smothered in melted butter and sour cream. The beef was tender and tasty, but leftovers were once again in order. The smoked sausage scrambled up with eggs the next day made for another one of those memorable all day breakfasts.

The final bonus at Pop’s was that we got dinner and a show! Shortly after sitting down at the shaded picnic table with our mess ‘o food, police cars started zipping by with sirens blaring. Then they went the other way, and back again. A parade was about to begin. As I sat licking my fingers, feeling satisfied, and finishing René’s iced tea, she ran off with the camera to capture the colorful Cinco De Mayo celebration passing by.

As paramedics brought up the rear, I felt safe knowing help was nearby if I decided to eat just one more piece of sausage. Allen’s, here we come!

Seems like whenever we are deprived of real ethnic food for a while, once we do get anywhere near it, we automatically head for the nearest Chinatown for some dim sum. In our travels, we’ve experienced five official Chinatown districts in: Seattle, Toronto, Manhattan, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Seattle’s Chinatown is the lamest ever. Some Chamber of Commerce people christened it Chinatown, but it’s really just a place on the rougher edges of town where a lot of Asians live. The city put up some tacky Chinese gates there, but we didn’t buy it. There’s not much to check out, and the dim sum was boring. It was a real disappointment when we visited last November, especially after being cut off from real Asian food for almost all of 2008.

Manhattan’s Chinatown was a good experience, but felt a little too modern and spread out. We haven’t been there for years though, so we’ll give it another try next time we ditch the rig and head into the big city.

Toronto’s Chinatown is the only one on the East Coast worth checking out. With three different Chinatowns in the greater Toronto area, there’s tons of great food, and lots of colorful scenery. We definitely got our dim sum fix there, in fall of 2007. The one thing we didn’t like about it is that it was just too darn big to see it all.

For the ultimate Chinatown experience in North America, head to San Francisco . Go beyond the tacky tourist gates and storefronts, and get to know the real Chinatown. Wander the tiny alleys, marvel at the architecture, and play liar’s dice at an old opium den.

But don’t be in a hurry, because in Chinatown, you go nowhere, fast. There’s so many people on the street, that navigating through the dense crowds takes patience and time. Several weeks ago we got our first real dim sum fix there since leaving California in 2007. We happily committed dim sum suicide at Gold Mountain. Go there.

And when you’re stuck in the crowds, you’ll forget you were ever trying to get anywhere, because you’ll be amazed at all of the crazy, completely unidentifiable food stuffs, like these.