fiona tate author at My Family Travels
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This Small-Town Missouri Restaurant Serves Hand-Cut USDA Prime Steaks Worth Planning A Drive For

A good steak can make the GPS earn its keep. Suddenly, dinner deserves a drive, and your usual takeout plans can wait. This small-town...

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This Missouri BBQ Joint Smokes Its Meats Daily Inside A Former 1930s Texaco Station

Gas pumps once served drivers here; now the smoke signals point toward barbecue. This Missouri stop keeps its 1930s Texaco roots visible, right down to the original gas-station...

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A Five-Acre Missouri Garden With A Waterfall Hides Behind An Insurance Headquarters

A waterfall hiding behind an insurance headquarters sounds like a plot twist, but this five-acre Missouri garden is full of pleasant surprises.

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11 Missouri Diners That Still Serve The Breakfasts You Grew Up With

Before breakfast became avocado toast and elaborate brunch boards, mornings were a lot simpler. These Missouri diners still...

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This Missouri Restaurant Serves Crawfish, Shrimp And Fried Frog Legs On An All-You-Can-Eat Dinner Buffet

Frog legs are not something you expect to find beside shrimp and crawfish on the same buffet. That is exactly what makes this Missouri dinner spread stand out.

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This Missouri Coffee Shop Comes With A Greenhouse Full Of Plants You Can Take Home

Coffee in one hand and a new houseplant in the other is a pretty easy way to lose track of time. This Missouri shop combines...

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This Missouri Italian Market Has Been Cutting Meat The Old-Fashioned Way Since 1929

Before shrink-wrapped steaks and grab-and-go meat cases took over, this was simply how grocery shopping worked. At this Missouri market, the butcher counter still feels pleasantly...

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This Missouri Farm Has A 16-Acre Corn Maze And A Three-Story Gumball Coaster

Most fall farms do not have a candy machine tall enough to need its own staircase. This Missouri farm does. Inside the barn,...

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This Missouri Family Restaurant Keeps Breakfast Simple With Eggs, Hash Browns, And Biscuits And Gravy

Breakfast does not need a gimmick when the basics are done right. This Missouri family restaurant keeps the morning menu familiar with eggs, crispy hash browns, biscuits and gravy,...

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A Short Missouri Hike Leads To A Rocky Summit That Looks Like A Giant Honeycomb

The top of this Missouri hike looks like someone pressed a giant honeycomb into the rock. Dark rhyolite columns break the summit into strange geometric shapes, giving the whole...

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British Fish And Chips Meet Handmade Cornish Pasties At A Missouri Food Hall

A proper Cornish pasty is a long way from the usual food hall lunch. This Missouri spot fills flaky pastry with hearty combinations...

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Bumper Cars Become A Competitive Team Sport At This Missouri Indoor Attraction

Trying to score while your friends keep smashing into your car is harder than it sounds. This Missouri attraction turns bumper cars into a full team game, with players passing...

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The Old-School Pizza Hut Lunch Buffet Still Lives On At A Missouri Location

A lot of people thought this kind of Pizza Hut lunch was gone for good. Not here. This Missouri location still rolls out the...

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This Missouri Family Restaurant Serves A Giant Cinnamon Roll Covered In Cream Cheese Frosting

This cinnamon roll does not exactly stay in its lane. It arrives big, warm, and covered in cream cheese frosting, which makes sharing sound responsible for about five seconds.

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This Missouri General Store Stocks Over 100 Soda Flavors Alongside Nostalgic Candy And Ice Cream

Root beer, cherry cola, orange cream, and flavors that sound like somebody made them up on a dare all share shelf space here. This...

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Missouri Has A Natural Water Park Where A River Tumbles Through Billion-Year-Old Rock Chutes And Pools

The river does all the work here. Instead of slides and concrete pools, this Missouri swimming spot uses ancient rock to create narrow chutes, rushing water, deep pockets, and...

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Rural Missouri Readers Just Picked This Scratch-Made Small-Town Restaurant As Their Favorite In The State

Winning over an entire state of rural readers is a pretty good sign you are doing dinner right. This Missouri restaurant took the top spot in Rural Missouri’s latest reader poll,...

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This Missouri Indoor Playground Turns Giant Slides Into The Ultimate Night Out For Grown-Ups

The kind of childhood dream that never quite leaves you, the one where you get to race down a giant slide without waiting for a turn or sharing with a stranger. That dream becomes...

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Jerk Chicken, Curried Goat, And Oxtail Fill The Menu At This Missouri Jamaican Restaurant

You may need a minute with this menu. Jerk chicken sounds good. Then you spot the oxtail. Then curried goat enters the conversation...

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A Rugged Gravel Road Leads To This 1895 Missouri Mill In A Nearly Vanished Ozark Town

There is still a working piece of 1890s Missouri hiding at the end of a rough Ozark road. This old mill dates to 1895, and much of its original equipment remains inside, surrounded...

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This Missouri Trail Drops Down 315 Stone Steps To A Cave, Waterfall, And Lake Views

Those 315 steps look a lot more innocent from the top. Once you start heading down, this Missouri trail quickly turns into a proper little adventure.

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Five Short Trails Take You Through Prairie, Forest, Glades, And Ponds At This Free Missouri Nature Center

You can cover a surprising amount of Missouri scenery without driving anywhere else. Five short trails branch out from this free nature center, taking you through prairie, forest,...

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You Can Tour This Missouri Smokehouse And See How Its Famous Bacon And Hams Are Made

Most people only see bacon after it lands in the frying pan. Here, you can actually see what happens before that. This Missouri...

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Treasure Hunters Could Lose An Entire Afternoon Inside This Missouri Thrift Store

A lamp, a winter coat, three picture frames, and something weird you cannot quite identify can all end up in the same cart here. That is the fun of this Missouri thrift store.

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This Missouri Asian Eatery Fills Steamed Bao With Everything From Pork Belly To Fried Chicken

Pork belly in one bun, fried chicken in the next. That is the kind of lunch decision you get here. This Missouri eatery builds...

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10 Missouri Thrift Stores Where You Could Easily Lose An Entire Afternoon

You know the kind of thrift store where you walk in for one thing and somehow lose two hours? Missouri has plenty of them. These...

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Missouri Has A Pie Shop With More Than 50 Kinds Of Pie

Fifty kinds of pie is a lot to process before dessert. This Missouri shop keeps the cases full of fruit pies, cream pies, nut-filled favorites, seasonal flavors, and a few savory...

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You Can Paddle The Lake, Hike For Miles And Sleep In A Cabin At This Missouri State Park

That quiet water was the first thing I noticed, even with a few boats humming somewhere out past the coves. I had driven into southeast Missouri expecting a simple lake stop, and...

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This Retro Missouri Lodge Lets You Soak Beside A Creek And Watch Movies From The Pool

Tall Ozark trees, the sound of Fall Creek running somewhere behind the buildings, and a property with warm wood and earthy colors tucked into a green valley.

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House-Made Sausage, Akaushi Beef, And Smoked Bologna Fill The Cases At This Missouri Butcher Shop

Dinner plans can get ambitious pretty fast once you see what is behind this butcher counter. This Missouri shop keeps Akaushi...

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This Small-Town Missouri Supermarket Still Cuts Fresh Meat Daily And Keeps Hot Food Coming From The Deli

You can still hear the slicer going and smell lunch before you reach the deli counter. This Missouri supermarket has that familiar small-town feel, with butchers cutting meat daily...

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Fresh Halal Meat Is Cut To Order At This Missouri International Market Packed With Hard-To-Find Groceries

The butcher counter is where this place really gets interesting. This Missouri international market cuts fresh halal beef, chicken, goat, and lamb to order, so you can ask for...

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Still Family-Owned After More Than 65 Years, This Missouri Italian Restaurant Keeps Feeding Generations

There is something reassuring about a restaurant that has been feeding the same community for generations. This Missouri Italian...

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This Remote Missouri Mill Site Has A Giant Steel Water Wheel Beside A Cold Spring

The giant steel water wheel is the first thing that makes this place feel different. This remote Missouri site sits deep in the Ozarks, where an old mill once served a small community...

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This Former Missouri Corporate Retreat Now Hides Two Lakes And Rustic 1930s Lodge Buildings

Executives once came here to get away from work. Now, everyone gets to enjoy the place. This Missouri park grew out of a private...

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This Missouri Plant Farm Has More Than 1,700 Varieties For Gardeners To Dig Through

Plant people could lose a whole afternoon here without trying very hard. This Missouri farm grows more than seventeen hundred varieties, so the selection goes far beyond the usual...

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A Full-Size DC-3 Sits On The Roof Of This Missouri Coffee Factory You Can Actually Tour

The airplane on the roof is your first clue that this is not a normal coffee stop. This Missouri factory has a full-size DC-3...

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A Balkan Cafe Is Hiding Inside This Missouri Nursery That Has Been Growing Since 1959

Plants downstairs, Bosnian coffee upstairs. That is already a pretty good reason to stop. This Missouri nursery has been growing...

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Sushi, Hibachi, And Endless Seafood Fill This Massive Missouri All-You-Can-Eat Buffet

You know the kind of buffet where everyone comes back to the table with a completely different plate? This Missouri spot is built for that.

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This Old-Fashioned Missouri Sweet Shop Lets You Watch Candy Makers At Work

Watching caramel get poured and chocolate get dipped makes buying candy a lot more fun. This Missouri sweet shop lets visitors peek through big windows while the candy makers work...

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Coffee, Ice Cream, And Homemade Food Make This Rural Missouri Crossroads Cafe Worth The Detour

Some of the best road-trip stops are the ones you almost drive past. This rural Missouri cafe sits at a quiet crossroads and...

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More Than 75 Classic And Celebrity Cars Fill This Missouri Route 66 Museum

One minute you are staring at a polished classic, and the next you are pointing at a car you swear you have seen on screen before.

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This New Missouri Gelato Shop Is Filled With Italian Pastries And Sandwiches On House-Made Bread

Gelato might get you through the door, but the pastry case makes it hard to leave quickly. This new Missouri shop packs in Italian sweets, fresh bread, panini, sandwiches, and...

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A Sunken 1856 Steamboat Left Behind 200 Tons Of Frontier Cargo At This Missouri Museum

This is one of those museum stories that sounds made up until you see the evidence. A steamboat sank in 1856, disappeared under the Missouri River landscape, and sat there for...

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Pick A Steak From The Butcher Case And Have The Kitchen Cook It For Dinner At This Missouri Market

Choosing dinner usually happens from a menu. Here, it starts at the butcher case. This Missouri market lets you pick out the...

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Japanese Milk Bread, Fresh Focaccia, And Blackhole Pastries Fill This Missouri Neighborhood Bodega

Milk bread, focaccia, and Blackhole pastries are doing a lot of heavy lifting inside this tiny Missouri bodega. The shelves may say neighborhood market, but the food lineup feels...

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This Three-Mile Missouri Loop Follows A Clear Creek To A Cascading Waterfall

Three miles does not sound like much until the trail starts throwing creek crossings, rocky stretches, and a waterfall into the mix.

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This Missouri Salvage Shop Is Packed With Architectural Antiques And Vintage Treasures

Old houses leave behind more than memories. Doors, hinges, light fixtures, woodwork, and other pieces can all find a second life here.

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More Than 40 Years Later, This Missouri Chinese Restaurant Is Still Serving Award-Winning Cashew Chicken

Some recipes earn a following. Others stick around for decades and become part of the local food scene. This Missouri Chinese...

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This Missouri BBQ Joint Lets You Eat Inside An Old Railroad Car Beside The Tracks

Barbecue tastes a little more fun when dinner comes with a railroad car. This Missouri restaurant serves its smoked meats in a setting packed with train history, including a vintage...

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Behind The Doors Of This Cozy Missouri Italian-French Joint, A Chef With James Beard House Credentials Is Cooking

A restaurant does not need a huge dining room to make a serious impression. This Missouri Italian-French joint keeps things cozy while putting plenty of attention into the food,...

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Missouri Shoppers Can Find Everyday Grocery Savings At This No-Frills Store

Grocery shopping does not always need to mean filling a huge cart. Sometimes, a simple store with everyday essentials and straightforward prices is exactly what you need.

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You Can Hike Around A Wooded Lake Then Cool Off At The Beach In This Missouri State Park

The trail dips beneath a canopy of oak and hickory, and the sound of the lake grows closer with each step. A three-and-a-half-mile loop circles the water, offering shaded stretches...

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Bald Eagles And More Than 300 Bird Species Can Be Spotted Along This Ten-Mile Missouri Wildlife Drive

A wall of honking snow geese so loud you laugh out loud in your own car. That is the first thing that hits you on the gravel loop at a Missouri wildlife refuge, a place where the...

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This Family-Run Missouri Mexican Market Starts Serving Breakfast Tacos At Six In The Morning

That soft gray-blue sky over Kansas City, Missouri before sunrise, and the only light on the block came from a corner building with piñatas hanging in the window. I had heard...

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This Missouri Steakhouse Has Been Serving Dinner In Kansas City’s Historic Stockyards Since 1949

That historic building in the Missouri's West Bottoms has been standing since the late 1800s, and the steakhouse inside it has been feeding people since 1949. Stepping through...

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This Missouri Cave Lets You Walk Half A Mile Underground Without Climbing A Single Stair

That cave mouth was so wide it looked like the hillside had yawned. I had driven out on a warm afternoon expecting a quick roadside stop, and instead I found cool air rolling out...

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This Missouri Cabin Resort Shuttles You Upriver So You Can Float Back To Your Cabin

Most float trips end with a long, tired drive back to the car. This one ends at your front door. At a cabin resort tucked deep...

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This Missouri Park Becomes A Bustling Market Each Wednesday From May Through October

The park looks different on Wednesdays. The usual calm of the green space gives way to a bustling scene of white tents and friendly crowds.

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This Missouri Restaurant Is Hidden Inside A Craft Mall Where Live Music Comes With Dinner

A meal and a show usually mean two separate stops. Not at this spot in Missouri. A restaurant tucked inside a sprawling craft...

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