Craig's Excellent 6 hour Adventure-Phoenix

The first stop on my adventures usually includes food, and this trip was no exception. The Matador Mexican Food Restaurant, http://www.matador2go.com, proved to be a logical place because it was 1) close to a Red Line bus stop downtown; 2) it's open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; and 3) it's a locally owned eatery in a land dominated by Starbucks and Quiznos. Decorated with matador murals, the place is enormous, with banquet seating is for 300 or so. We managed to get a booth by the window and decided that breakfast was the logical choice (after all, it was only 10 in the morning). Service was a little slow but very friendly. I decided on the machaca con huevos: seasoned, shredded beef cooked with scrambled eggs, served with rice and refried beans. Other diners went for the huevos rancheros. Both dishes came with a choice of corn or flour tortillas and were in the $6.50 to $7.50 range. An excellent carbohydrate boost to get through the next few hours.

When it comes to Mexican food (barbeque also falls into this category), locals will either love or hate a place. Everyone has their own idea of what Mexican food should be or shouldn’t be and they have their own favorite. My conclusion: don’t go to the Matador expecting a culinary experience that will change your life. The service is friendly, the prices are reasonable, and the food is pretty good. What more can you ask for?

Having had our spirits raised by a good glass of Guinness at Seamus McCaffrey's, we were off to the corner of E Van Buren St & N Central Av to catch the Route 3 bus. Our destination was the La Grande Orange Grocery at 4410 N 40th St. According to the handy trip planner provided Valley Metro, the Route 3 bus would take us to our destination in about 30 minutes. It worked like a charm.

I often read in travel magazines about destinations for "sophisticated" travelers luxuriating in high dollar retreats. If that is your deal, then traveling the number 3 bus is definitely not for you. The bus winds through working-class neighborhoods and acres of parking lots, chainlink fences, and strip malls. We were nervously questioned by a toothless forty-something woman in a stained T-shirt about where she could cash a check and entertained by the conversation of three teenage girls wearing house slippers, using language normally reserved for drunk sailors, about how they were going to "pimp out their truck." Just part of the rich tapestry that is public transportation, I suppose.

La Grande Orange Grocery is part-grocery store, part-restaurant, with alfresco dining and a "Java Garden." We had heard that La Grande Orange Grocery had arguably the best pizzas in town and were a bit disappointed that they didn’t fire up the pizza ovens until 4pm. Undeterred, we ordered a croque monsieur and a grilled cheese sandwich off the extensive blackboard menu of soups, sandwiches, and salads. I normally don’t rave about sandwiches, but both selections were outstanding. Made on bread baked on-site, with generous portions of real cheese, the items were memorable due to the quality and quantity of the ingredients. If I lived in Phoenix, I would definitely be a regular at La Grande Orange Grocery. We were sufficiently impressed by the bread to purchase a couple of loaves take back home. If the weather is agreeable, dine outside or take your coffee to the landscaped Java Garden on the side of the building.

Even though time was running a little short, we stuck to our itinerary and walked about a half-mile south, down N. 40th St. to Indian School Road to catch the Route 41 Bus headed west. Our destination was the Lux Coffeebar at 4404 N. Central Ave. This 20-minute bus ride in the middle of the afternoon turned into an adventure in itself, as the bus slowly filled to capacity with school kids hopping on board to make their way home. As the bus groaned to a stop at Central Ave, we hopped off and walked north another half-mile to the coffee bar, located directly across the street from a high school.

Housed in what looks to be an old commercial space built when this was still the outskirts of town, the Lux Coffeebar has cool and dark feel, with couches, chairs, and long bar running against the wall. This place has the look of where the alternative crowd of Phoenix hangs out. In the afternoon, we found the folks working there cheerful and attentive. They also serve an excellent coffee, dark and full-bodied. The beans are roasted in the back of the shop daily. After buying taking our coffee out side to enjoy the perfect winter weather, and buying a couple of pounds of coffee to take home, our time was up. We walked outside the Lux Coffeebar to the bus stop and waited for the Red Line bus to take us back to the airport. Valley Metro scores again. The bus shows up on time, and about 40 minutes later, we’re at the airport checking in for our flight.

Having concluded the historical aspect of the six-hour adventure, we caught DASH shuttle and headed for the San Carlos Hotel in downtown Phoenix. Not that we were spending the night, but it was home to Seamus McCaffrey's Irish Pub & Restaurant.

Seamus McCaffrey's is an interesting place. It's a pub setting serving standard pub grub, but the place has a distinct Arizona/Southwest feel. Maybe it was the display of law enforcement patches hung on the back bar (souvenirs of peace officers from the southwest that have sipped suds here) or the fact that the dry desert air and bright sunshine crept into the bar from the open front door. Although you aren’t transported magically to the Emerald Isle, this place serves some of the best Guinness I’ve tasted. Creamy, with just the right touch of bitterness, and served at the right temperature, this place definitely treats their beer with respect.

Most Phoenix travel material goes straight to the high-dollar spa and vacation package trade. Primarily, you see stuff like "Bank One Ballpark, fine dining and world-class spas make Phoenix an ideal vacation destination". Great! It's early March, I only have a few hours, I’m on a limited budget, and riding the bus. At least the weather was perfect.

I will now sing praises of public transportation in Phoenix. An all-day pass is $3.60. Individual fares are $1.25. Their website also has a great trip planner that aids the traveler in getting around with a minimum of hassle: http://www.valleymetro.org/. With a little planning, we managed to see quite a bit of Central Phoenix in a short amount of time. We got from the airport to downtown on the Red Line in about 20 minutes.

One of the cool things Valley Metro provides is the Downtown Area Shuttle, or DASH. It's a free shuttle that runs weekdays 6:30am to 11pm. The route changes at 5:30pm to accommodate the crowds that flock to the ballpark and the basketball arena. We used it to get to the Arizona Capitol Museum and take a quick (and free) tour of Downtown Phoenix. One odd thing I noticed on the DASH bus was the sign stating "No Smelly Packages." Either Phoenicians have tendency to transport stinky stuff while riding public transportation, or it’s a ploy to keep the homeless and their belongings off the bus. You be the judge.

Speaking of the homeless, downtown seems to have their fair share of indigents wandering around. However, due to the desert climate and long stretches of cloudless days, they all appear to be nicely tanned, as opposed to the homeless in, say, Montreal.

After breakfast at the Matador Mexican Food Restaurant and a brief we stroll around the corner to the Hard Rock Café (for a guitar pin), it was time to hop aboard DASH, the Downtown Area Shuttle, for a trip to and the obligatory photo of the State Capitol.

The old State Capital, built in 1900, is now a three story museum (the real state government has moved into modern digs next door). The museum is open from 8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday. Although there are guided tours to the building, it really isn’t necessary unless you‘re a history junkie. We just wandered around, looking at the exhibits. Everything from a stuffed leopard (that I swear looks stoned) in the wildlife/outdoor exhibit to a 1900 recreation of state office spaces are on display. Pretty entertaining stuff. We were also able to walk around in the former House of Representatives Chamber. It provides some great photo opportunities.

Before hopping back on DASH, make a stop at the Capitol Museum Store if you need some souvenirs for the folks back home. Arizona mouse pads, T-shirts, pins, and books are on sale.