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Find or Refer a Contractor in Tyler

The Tour of Texas Day Four

March 15th, 2011

Texas State Capital BuildingI have visited both the Texas State Capital and the Bob Bullock, State History Museum enough times that I could just about give the tours on my own, (only admittedly in watered down form, but I know the things that are significant for my students to learn). The fourth day of the Tour of Texas was a Sunday. The weather continued to be beautiful. We walked around the outside of the building and I pointed out monuments pertaining to periods we’ve studied in the course of the school year. We also made a point to stop by the plot where Tyler Roses grow. Most States have capital gardens. My understanding is that Texas is the only state with a divided campus for its garden. The Tyler Rose Garden is considered a wing of the State Garden and thus has a small area set aside next to the capital in Austin, to grow Tyler Roses.

When we visited the capitol building that morning there was a surprising number of People. Prior to our arrival, I was concerned about whether or not the legislative chambers would be open. Fortunately I need not have worried. We walked through both the House and Senate, discussing the paintings that hang there and identifying people in the portraits. The students also explored the rotunda looking for historical figures like Sam Houston, they’d been assigned to find.

Following our visit to the Capitol, we made our way to the State History Museum, had lunch on the balcony of the museum cafeteria, and then explored the exhibits. The last educational event of the day was the short film entitled the Star of Destiny, the “4 D” feature film presented year round by the museum. The students loved the movie but I must confess to being a bit disappointed in the normally great movie. Some of the effects seemed not to be working at key points. I was apparently the only one who noticed and everyone had a great time.

MuseumIt might seem silly but for me the event of the day was checking off the last box on the list of great Texas food, namely bar-b-que! That evening we ate at Austin (actually Driftwood), barbeque legend, “The Salt Lick.” The restaurant is well known and has been featured in magazines and on television shows like the Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food. Its great Texas bar-be-que, and we all had more than our fill. Particularly some of the young men in the group. The following morning I was unable to eat breakfast finding that I was still full from the previous evenings feast. I guess Fat Tuesday came a couple evenings early for me.

Traditions Restaurant in Tyler Texas

July 23rd, 2010

As young man traveling abroad, with my folks and as a student, I took to heart the adage that to find the best food, find out where the locals eat. The Tyler community has a really incredible food culture and some great local eateries and institutions.

From Stanley’s to the Purple Pig, Don Juan’s, Jake’s, Rick’s, Bruno’s, Villa Montez, the list goes on and on and covers a variety of dining experiences both fine and casual. With this fact in mind, I am continually surprised by the success, and in some cases, the renown of some pretty blasé restaurants in town.

One such is Traditions on South Broadway. Now I’ve eaten at traditions on several occasions, and it’s not that the food is bad, but (in my opinion) the restaurant is nothing to write home about. In spite of this, their catering business is very successful, and services some exceptionally high class venues.

I am willing to concede that the special attention a catered event requires has probably helped to set the establishment apart from their area competition. In terms of the restaurant proper however, I remain underwhelmed. The cafeteria style pay at the end of the line makes me think of an upscale Luby’s or Ryan’s.

Traditions is a good place to bring quests who are generally more interested in getting the tip exactly right and less interested in sampling unique local cuisine. For those of us for whom meat and potatoes defines the perfect meal, Traditions is ideal. We took my visiting grandparents a couple of years ago, and they had a great time.

It never occurred to them that there were great places to eat that would more enrich their visit to Tyler. I guess that’s what I find lacking in Traditions. While the food is fine, visiting is not the event that a stop at my local favs like Stanley’s or Don Juan’s is for me. I’m not a foodie and I’m not continually trying to make a statement with every dining choice.

To paraphrase Sigmound, sometimes a burger is just a burger. But I also enjoy discovering new foods and new places to eat. If you’re like me in this respect you’ll not be hugely enamored of this eatery. Personally I’d give Traditions a three, out of five stars.

But don’t take my word for it, take an evening and judge for yourself. For more information, check out their website at http://www.traditionstyler.com/restaurant.shtml. For reservations, or speak to someone about having your event catered, call (903)534-1111.

Tyler Area Zip Lines

July 1st, 2010
http://www.goziptexas.com/

NY TX Zip Line Adventures

It seems like a recent trend over the last few years, but Zip- lining has become a huge phenomenon! In fact, nearly every time I turn around, either someone is telling me about their experience, or I’m seeing someone trying it on television.

Now for those hard core enthusiasts, who are likely to protest that the hobby is not new, I know, I know… I’m only asserting that there has been a renewed interest of late. I recall as a kid playing at my uncle’s house where he had run an admittedly short line through the hills around his Vancouver Island home. That line was admittedly rudimentary but we had a great time.

There is now a professional series of lines in East Texas. The company is called NY- TX Zip Line Adventures and they are located at Shultz Mountain Ranch about twenty miles east of Athens. The historic Shultz home is the center piece and home base for the ranch. The views are tremendous and guests can ride through six different zip tours, the longest of which is nine hundred feet long and a hundred feet above ground.

From looking at the pictures available on the site the surrounding landscapes are really beautiful! They also offer a tour available only to returning visitors. It’s called the Full Moon tour, and it whisks participants through the Piney Woods on moon lit nights. Now there is a price to be paid for an adventure like this, and it’s not particularly cheap. The cost for a single rider on one tour is sixty dollars. Add three tours and the cost is eighty dollars.

And there are price reductions available for church groups by the way. Even though the admission fee is rather high, the experience looks to be worth the cost for those who can afford it. If I had more disposable income, I would certainly pay Zip Line Adventures near Tyler Texas a visit. As it is, I’ll have to wait a bit longer before taking in a day or night of flying through the forest. NY- TX Zip Line Adventures is located off 155 past Fat Dogs, on Farm Road 3506.

For more information visit their web site at www.goziptexas.com/index.html. This is a great site with a lot of information and incredible pics. I advise spending a little time looking it over before going. For those who do decide to go, have a great time, then licheck back with our site and tell us about your experience!

Santa Land in Tyler Texas Actually Lindale

December 3rd, 2009

Santa Land

11518 Interstate 20 W
Tyler, TX 75706-4842
(903) 882-1518

Last year we went to Santa Land and I was not expecting much having never been to one of these outdoor Christmas Light trails. What I discovered is that this particular place went through a lot of trouble to put together a pretty spectacular lights show. There are some 2D moving aspects of the light show where a motorcycle jumps over a creek and other interesting things. The kids in the car really had a great time and for the most part everyone came away with a good experience. The Santa Land light show doesn’t end there as they also have a really big gift shop called Santa’s Wish Shop

You can buy handmade Christmas ornaments, jewelry, jams, candles, paintings, and other Christmas gifts. They open on November 1st and Santa will be there starting on Thanksgiving day up until Christmas but the light show goes all the way until January 4th.

Santa Land boasts over 2 million Christmas  lights to drive through. The cost is $25 per car or $35 per 15 passenger van and you can have a trailer ride for $7 – $10 per person. The Santa Land location is opened from now until Christmas. .

Tyler Pizza Showdown

October 15th, 2009

If you are a big eater and love pizza, why not eat as much pizza as you want at Double Dave’s pizza? It is a great place to hang out with your friends and watch the game on the giant screen television or one of the many smaller televisions. Have a party in the back room with it’s own private television. Check out the specials on certain days. Double Dave’s is a great place to drink a beer and eat some of the greatest pizza in Tyler. You could also get your favorite pizza brought to your table or you can call in and pick your pizza to go. If you are throwing a party Double Dave’s will deliver to your house. Enjoy a great salad bar with all the freshest toppings. Have a great time playing video games with your kids, watching the game and eating all the pizza and wings you can.

If you ask any little kids where the most fun place to go is. They would not hesitate to tell you Chuck E. Cheese. The pizza might be a 4th pizza and the rest grease, but you never cease to have a great time. Enjoy all different video games, shoot around on the small basketball games and play in the fun playground area. Watch your children’s faces light up as they see Chuck E. walk out to greet them. If their birthday is coming up let them have the party that they really want at Chuck E Cheese. Watch your kids get so excited to pick out the small 25 cents toys that they won from the games that they have been playing. If you are looking of a fun place to play and “be a child” and not care so much about the bad pizza then this is the place for you.

CiCi’s Pizza is a very popular pizza buffet. It has great prices and a lot of pizza. If they are out of your favorite at the bar then you can ask them to make it just for you to bring to your table or just to serve on the bar. They have a salad bar with all different toppings. I don’t really like CiCi’s though. I don’t like the feeling of the employees screaming “WELCOME TO CICI’S” as I walk in, and yelling “THANK YOU” as I leave and everyone looking at me. I don’t like the chewy crust and the greasy cheese. I might be different then most people, but I like my lettuce green with a crunch and not brown and slimy. But there must be something good about the restaurant since there is always business, I just never have seen what that is.

The best pizza in Tyler and maybe in the country is definitely Papa Murphy’s. Walk into one of the small stores and order your own personal favorites with any topping that you want. Everything is hand made and half cooked. Take your pizza home and keep it in your refrigerator for later or you can take it straight home and cook it in your oven. Try there stuffed pizza with layers of meat and cheese or the thin crust. You can even by a wheel of garlic cheese bread or a wonderful desert pizza. You can not go wrong with choosing Papa Murphy’s, unless you don’t have an oven.

There is a couple Mazzio’s pizza in Tyler. I don’t know how they get any business and how anyone could eat in there. The floor is always dirty and the pizza bad. I swear that they must reserve the same pizza all week because I don’t understand how in only a day a pizza could be so stale. The only thing keeping it warm is the red light attracting the flies. I always feel sick when I see the filthy kitchen. After a week of a sick stomach I would not eat there again.

Tyler has one Ken’s pizza. They have a fun game room with all different arcade video games. But I have very little to say about the food there. Most of the times that I have gone there the pizza tasted cold and old. But I have been there when I was surprised by the warm crust with the perfect amount of crunch. But I always seem to feel so sick every time I eat there. The grease seems to flood the taste of the cheese and the meat and the sauce. I am not a big fan of greasy old crust. The tables and chairs are always really greasy and I always feel like I need to run home as fast as I can and take a shower. Ken’s pizza is definitely a “pass” when it comes to eating pizza or eating out in general.

So if your are going to eat pizza here in Tyler hopefully this will show you where to have great pizza and where to have a great time. Hopefully I showed you which places to stay clear of.