Lubbock Texas

My sister-in-law had heard about this new Mediterranean restaurant near the Texas Tech campus, and after a tour of the university they took us to Z'ba.

As we entered the restaurant we noticed the decoration. There were many paintings and decorations from Middle East, including our Blue Eye Beads (Nazar Boncugu). One corner was decorated solely as an "Orient Corner" with carpets, plates, and other stuff. The restaurant's ambience was of an expensive restaurant. The walls were painted peach in a Mexican style, the picture frames were a golden color, and the golden color was accentuated in the light, bright wood-colored chairs. Our table had a white tablecloth and fresh flowers. We were wary of the decoration at first--being students, we did not want to dine in an expensive establishment. So when we entered we asked for a menu and checked what kind of food they offered and their price. Seing familiar appetizers such as tabouleh, falafel, and hummus, and prices around $10 per entree, persuaded us to have our lunch in Z'ba.

We ordered Z'ba's Platter for $6.99, which included four types of appetizers: salad olivieh (chicken, potatoes, peas in mayonnaise), salad shirazi (a kind of mixed salad of tomotoes, raw onions, and peppers), dolmeh (cold stuffed grape leaves), and hummus (made with garbanzo beans and tahini). We also ordered an extra order of dolmeh, thinking this would be with ground beef as the menu said so, but we received the cold dolmeh with no beef. Three of us ordered koobideh kebab for $5.49, as it sounded like our own Turkish adana kebab, and one of us ordered a koobideh sandwich for $4.99 from the lunch menu. We asked the assistance of our waitress in choosing the food, but it seemed she didn't have any clue.

When our food arrived, we not only had a feast of the mouth but a feast for our eyes. The koobideh kebab was placed next to the basmati rice, which was white at the bottom and, like a painting, yellow and orange on top (saffron was used to achieve this nice presentation).

While we were eating, the owner of the restaurant came and talked to us. When he learned we were from Turkey, he put Turkish music on (The latest Tarkan CD). When we were done and ready to ask for the check, he offered us a taste of Z'ba's baklava. He brought it out himself and wanted our feedback. We were all used to Turkish baklava made with a fillo dough, so we didn't appreciate the Iranian version of baklava, which was solely made with walnuts, honey, coliander, and rose water. One order was enough for four of us and cost $6.95.

The restaurant advertises belly dancing on Friday and Saturday nights and live jazz music on Thursday nights. After 11pm on Friday and Saturday nights there is disco and salsa dancing. I believe this restaurant offers one of the best values for your money in the Lubbock area.

My sister-in-law told us that Rosa's Cafe is a well-known place to eat cheap Mexican food. Rosa's Cafe is a chain Mexican restaurant in Texas and has three restaurants in Lubbock. If I had to categorize it I would put it with the other Mexican fastfood chains but it still be wrong to categorize it as a fastfood restaurant for couple of reasons. First of all, Rosa's Cafe serves beer (The ads for Dos Equis, mexican beer, hang on the walls. Secondly, Rosa's Cafe was spacious with high ceilings and nice decorations. When we entered we saw their fresh tortilla machine. At one end an employee put dough, at the other end the tortilla came out cooked. We ordered our food at the counter: Deluxe Mexican Plate(Enchilada, Tamale, Chalupa, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Guacamole, 2 Flour Tortillas, 2 Chips and Crispy Beef Taco), Mexican Dinner (Taco, Enchilada, Beans, Rice, 2 Flour Tortillas, 2 Chips and Crispy Chicken Taco), two chicken burrittos, and more. We paid a little bit more than $20 for all this food.

At a self-serve bar we picked up the condiments (salsa, gallo pinto, roasted peppers and tomatoes, etc. but no sourcream). When I got a first bite of my fajita I was suprised that in a fastfood like restaurant they had such delicous food. Afterwards, I learned that the beef and chicken fajitas are marinated for 24 hours, then grilled fresh over real West Texas Mesquite, giving them their unique taste.

While we were eating our food we admired the interior decorations. Inside of the restaurant the rooms gave the ambiance of a Mexican town with lots of Mexican artifacts. On a fake roof there were various clay pots, and pinatas. The chairs were all painted in bright colors and were decorated with colorful designs. I sat on a red chair, my brother on a yellow chair, and his wife and my husband on green chairs. For those who want to enjoy the beautiful Texas sky, there were tables available outside. I will say if you want to eat good Mexican food cheap go to Rosa's Cafe. I wish I was in Lubbock now and eating at Rosa's Cafe with my brother, his wife and my hubby.

Museum of Texas University hosts various kinds of exhibits: real size dinosaur skeletons, African art, Chinese crafted ivory, American paintings, modern paintings, last century in Lubbock. Last year there was a special exhibits of Medieval Frescoes from the Vatican Museums Collection, and Sacred Art from the Old and New Worlds. The Medieval Frescoes had nearly 20 frescoes by master painters of the Roman School and came from the churches of St. Nicola and St. Agnese. The museum also had pieces borrowed from other museums to have a collateral exhibition. Silver religious objects, paintings and sculptures came from Museo Franz Mayer in Mexico City and paintings from the Sarah Campbell Blaffer Foundation in Houston. However, when we visited in September 2003 there wasn't any major exhibition for the public. An exhibition on dinosaurs was on its way.

I believe the museum would be much more enjoyable to visit if the design of the exhibits were more thought after. Besides from this minor pitfall there are many intriguing items on display for the visitors. One of the most interesting exhibits for me was the photographs of Native Americans living in the Southwest United States. Although the subjects dressed up and posed for the occasion it gave me a glimpse of their past lives. The pictures were taken in the 19th century. Another interesting thing for me was to learn about the Mammoths. These huge creatures became extinct while the first human migrated to North America. I respected the hunter who could kill such a big animal. It sounded like another interesting exhibit. The Moody Planetarium was closed for renovation when we visited. It might be another fun place to bring the kids.

Allow 30-45 minutes to have a self-tour of the museum. There is free parking in front of the museum. At the entrance you can pick up the map of the exhibits. You are not allowed to take the pictures of the painting with a flash camera. The museum is closed on Mondays.

"At least the fifty songs we wrote were Buddy Holly influenced." Paul McCartney

Every year near Labor day there are free concerts all day long at the Buddy Holly Festival The festival takes place at the Buddy Holly Center, which was named for Lubbock's rock pioneer.

We arrived late and watched a concert by Patricia Vonne that made us feel that we "really" were in Texas. She had a nice cowgirl dress and she spoke and sang both in English and Spanish. The audience consisted of local people, some dressed in cowboy boots, hats and shirts. After Patricia Vonne's concert ended we toured inside of the Buddy Holly Center. There was a big copy of Buddy Holly's trademark black horn-rimmed glasses at the entrance, and the pair recovered from the crash site was exhibited inside. Although the regular entry to the center is $3 for adults, it was free during the festival. We toured the general exhibits, read about his life, saw artifacts such as his speeding tickets, plane tickets, hotel receipts, as well as various pictures. What I was most impressed by was when he was 4 years old he attended a birthday party and the Lubbock newspaper reported that he sang for the occasion. He must have had such a nice voice and a good ear to be mentioned in a newspaper at such a young age.

In a little theatre we watched a 20-minute documentary on his life. It was sad to recognize that he died at such a young age--23--in a plane crash with other young and talented rock-and-roll singers: Ritchie Valens and J.P. "The Big Bopper." We visited the gift store, the Lubbock Fine Arts museum and the Texas Musicians Hall of Fame. Buddy Holly's wife and his friends were attending the festival. My brother and his wife met one of his girlfriends whose dresses and pictures were in display.

That night I wanted to watch the movie on Buddy Holly's life, but my husband, my brother and his wife were already saddened about his tragic accident; they vetoed my decision.

It was Labor Day, and most of the museums were closed...so here we went to the Apple Country Orchards. Apple Country Orchards is located north of Lubbock, in a little town called Idalou. There are nearly 6000 trees with 30 different kinds.

When we visited, they had four different kinds of apples that you could pick: Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Ozark Gold, and Melrose. We were given a big bucket with wheels and an apple-picking stick (I forget what they called it). We were told that there are four colors of flag in front of the apple row denoting what type of apple is planted on that row. I don't remember exactly, but it was something like red for Red Delicious, yellow for Golden Delicious, orange for Melrose, and finally green for Ozark Gold. You can check at their website what kind of apples are ready to be picked.

We started eating and picking. I picked Melrose and loved it. My brother ate all different kinds and ate the one he liked one more time. We filled our bucket with autumn apples. It was 59 cents per pound, and we picked $8 worth of apples (now my sister-in-law is thinking about what to do with all those apples).

The Apple Country Orchard also has a lunchroom and country store. When we visited, the lunch was over. The lunchroom serves food Monday to Saturday from 11:30am to 2pm. The day we visited, on Monday, the food of the day was lasagna & cider sourdough bread. The lunch costs $4.95 plus tax, and it was advertised that all meals were served with hot vegetables, fried apples, fresh salads, beverage, and a dessert (German apple cake, baked apple turnovers, and apple puffs are some of the desserts served for lunch). From the Apple Country Orchards' bakery, we bought their famous German apple cake to eat at home (yummy...) The country store had apple butter, applesauce, and apple salsa, which were all tempting.

Their address is: Hwy 62/82, Idalou, TX
Phone: (806)892-2961 or (800) 765-7055