Happy Thanksgiving 🦃 Walt’s Diner fans! Today’s feature is brought to us by my beautiful wife, Heidi. I am thankful for her every day! She makes me a better person.

Heidi got some Jackson County persimmon pulp from a friend at work and fixed a pan of persimmon pudding for Thanksgiving dessert. My favorite piece is the corner, topped with a dollop of Cool Whip. (I actually added more Cool Whip after taking the photo. I don’t think you can have too much) I enjoy the texture of the corner, as it is a little more firm than the center pieces.

Great flavor. The next thing I need is a pan with more corners.

Heidi Wintin scores BIG with this creation at our first of several Thanksgiving dinners. This takes caramel apple dip to a new level.

1. Place a block of Philadelphia Cream Cheese on a plate.

2. Cover with Hershey’s caramel topping.

3. Sprinkle Heath Bar bits over that. (Heath Bar Bits put this dish over the top!)

Slice some apples and apply caramel apple spread as needed. You will not be disappointed.

Check this out. 50% Darlage Custom Meats ground chuck and 50% applewood smoked 🥓 bacon topped with cheddar and bacon strips on a toasted bun. ( Get it medium well.) And, how about the sweet potato 🍠 fries with marshmallow cream to dip them in. Major League!!! (Just so you know, I take all that pickles, tomato, onion and lettuce crap and put it to the side.)

Let’s talk about the Conductor Cream Ale. Brewed for Rails by the Schnitz Brewery out of Jasper, Indiana. Simply delicious.

I also had the opportunity to hug my lifetime friend Mitza Durham, shake a few hands from the past and reminisce with the voice of Seymour Athletics, Curt Nichols. ” Nick, get their asses off the field, we have a game to play!” Walt Wintin, SHS Athletic Director Quote.

Any trip to Bloomington, Indiana has its perks. The food and dining opportunities are limitless. Heidi and I were going to pick up Sophie, a freshman at IU, to bring her home for Thanksgiving. Whenever I can I shop at the Kroger near the College Mall. Or, as my brother-in-law, Doug Hackman calls it, Krogucci. Opposed to the Kroghetto, on the other side of town.

This store is a pleasure to shop, but today, my priority was the honey 🍯 roasted peanut 🥜 butter as we didn’t have a lot of time. The honey roasted peanuts are in a clear container that sits on top of a grinder. You place you plastic tub beneath the grinder and push the green button and you get freshly ground peanut butter. All it has in it are the honey roasted peanuts. One moment they are peanuts, the next it is peanut butter. It is some fantastic peanut butter! Somehwere between creamy and chunky.

If that isn’t enough, they have a beer section that I can spend significant amounts of time and 💰 money in.

Rails Craft Brew & Eatery is located at 114 St. Louis Avenue in Seymour, Indiana. The restaurant is an old remodeled brick building with an old 🛤 railroad atmosphere.

We started with the pretzel 🥨 bread and beer cheese. It was a good call. The pretzel bread was warm and the sauce was delicious.

This night I had the grilled chicken, applewood 🥓 bacon and ranch wrap with sweet potato 🍠 fries. You need to try the sweet potato fries. I salted them and dipped them in ketchup like regular 🍟 fries. The wrap was on point!

My friend David Goecker had a seasoned sirloin steak, baked potato 🥔 and a 🥗 salad. I sampled his sirloin that was cooked medium and it was tender and tasty.

I also had a pint of Ruby Bloom Amber from The Bloomington Brewing Company. It is a rich and flavorful dark beer and I recommend it. Rails has a variety of craft brews that will not disappoint.

Walt’s Diner gives Rails and it’s Railroad theme 👍👍.

Nicely Done!!! A huge filet of catfish, popcorn shrimp and fries. Pleasantly surprised with the popcorn shrimp and the catfish was a quality filet and steaming hot. Along with cocktail and tartar sauces. $11.99.

On a side note, $3.50 Strawberry 🍓 Blonde pints from Big Woods Brewery and $2 domestic pint drafts. Tough to beat.

Blondie’s 🍕 Pizzeria is located at the corner of Main & Walnut Streets in Brownstown, Indiana.

Today I had the lunch buffet and a drink for about $8. The choices were incredible! I tried the :

1. Mushroom 🍄 pizza- Excellent!

2. Buffalo chicken pizza- Outstanding!

3. Chicken Ranch- Choose you own delicious adjective!

4. Ham & cheese sub- very good!

I also had a 🥗 salad, but really, that sounds kind of healthy. My two favorite features were the sliced hard boiled eggs and the creamy Ranch dressing.

Mason and Tawnya Fleetwood run a great restaurant and one of their other nice features is the Pulled Pork Nachos featuring Colton’s “On Target” BBQ.

Don’t forget Tuesdays and Wednesdays are dollar domestic long neck nights. Also, you can walk in or call ahead for reservations. 812-358-1800.

At a certain point in his life, my Dad began to use the word “Visit” a lot more often than before. It wasn’t about entertainment or an activity, it was about spending time in conversation and catching up with friends and family. As for Heidi and myself, Sophie is away at college,  Rae is living on her own, and  Lawyer and Kiley are newlyweds living in Indy. And of course, Grandma, who started the whole thing is living in Seymour.

Lawyer wanted to bring his new wife, Kiley, somewhere they can’t go at home near Indianapolis. She had a breaded tenderloin with cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, pickles and mayo.

I had the pepper jack and cheddar cheese balls with Ranch dip.

Lawyer’s bacon cheeseburger with onion rings was more than enough.

Heidi, Sophie, Billie (Grandma), Rae, Lawyer, Kiley and myself sat long after the food was gone and the bill was paid. No hurry. Just enjoying “The Visit.”

Not to mention, they have beer. 🍺

That is “Ice, Ice, Baby” around the rim of that frosty pint glass at the Country Inn located in Dudleytown, Indiana. $2.50. I’m also impressed that they had Strawberry Blonde from Big Woods Brewery in tap. Very refreshing on a Friday night.

Once again, there is a blog-worthy tenderloin served up at this rural Jackson County establishment.

It takes two slices of cheese to cover this hot and crispy sandwich. So put on your Pioneer Seed Corn 🌽 hat and sit down a spell and talk to your neighbor at The Country Inn.

This is the Chef Salad from Town House Restaurant in Seymour. It is a bit healthier than the breaded tenderloin that is often difficult to pass up. Your server has the responsibility to make the salad. In this case, Jade. She nailed this Chef Salad with fresh Romaine lettuce, cheese, crispy bacon, grilled chicken, croutons, a hard boiled egg and of course, the Ranch dressing peeking in on the left. (I decline on the tomatoes.) You can also get ham on the salad if desired.

It was a refreshing dinner and left just enough room for a slice of pie. I was feeling guilty because I don’t come here very often with the family so I brought Heidi and Liam a slice of peanut butter pie home. (The peanut butter pie has enough personality to stand alone. Therefore, it will have its own post soon!)