Brent and I are usually pretty good getting a night away at least once a month.
It is a great time to just hang out as best friends, reconnect, and talk...uninterrupted. We had tried to plan this particular getaway in January, but it was booked up until February. At that point it was close enough to my birthday we decided to merge the two things.
In Central Oregon most of our friends share things like the best fishing places, fun local staycation destinations, and good food. So, from a few different sources we had heard of this place Cowboy Dinner Tree. Each person had different details and memories from their experience there, so we had quite the picture in our minds.
It was described as an old cattle drive stop. So rustic and in the middle of nowhere. They cook everything on a huge grill, as there is no electric cooking. When you call to make reservations they ask you chicken or steak. Those are the dinner options. If you order a chicken, you get a whole cooked chicken. If you order steak, you get a HUGE 32 or so ounce steak.
We were pretty excited. We had booked a stay in their cabins there on site too. However, due to all the snow and inclement weather, we were worried about making our reservation on Friday. So Brent called to see if we could move our dinner to Saturday. Which we were able to, but there were no cabins available that night. So, instead of an overnighter, we extended our trip to a weekend away and Brent found a cute little cabin about a half an hour away in Summer Lake.
We had arranged for Mitchel to be in charge for the weekend. He was pretty excited about the trust we were bestowing on him, especially in regards to him being in charge of a toddler. Sadly, my mother got wind of this and assured us her presence. I guess she ended up coming over and staying the weekend with them. O'well. Peace of mind for us, but it did steal a little of Mitch's thunder. I assured him there will be PLENTY of opportunities that he can watch his brothers.
Anyways, we took off Friday we were going to leave when the kids and I got home from school. (Did I mention I love my job?! I LOVE being a special education teacher) Instead we worked it out so Brent drove with me from work and we left from there.
On our way out of Bend it was snowing...a lot. Since the forecast was supposed to be clear, we were a little worried. Soon we were in a snowy covered plains area and the roads were clear. It was beautiful.
We made it to our cabin and checked in. It was a cute little cabin, right on a cute little lake/pond. The lodge had a restaurant, so we got settled in our cabin then headed to their restaurant for dinner. It was great.
We headed to dinner and found the restaurant out in the middle of nowhere. That was not an exaggeration. We walked on a rickety old wood walkway to the front door and opened up to a dimly lit room. We were greeted and sat quickly. We each got something different to drink. I had an iced tea, Brent had a lemonade. Brought to us in HUGE Mason jars. Then a family style salad was brought out with two types of dressing. Ranch and some tangy honey mustard type. Then (August's favorite) Cowboy soup was brought out, family style, and we were already getting full.
We weren't rushed at all, but they were very attentive and quickly swapped out thing on the table once they were empty or close to empty.
We each had our ginormous steaks placed in front of us. Each with a baked potato, side of sour cream, and some dinner rolls. I believe they cook the yeast rolls in an old style wood burning oven too. And I can't forget the butter. That is always one of Brent's favorite parts.
It was simple. Salt n pepper type seasoned steak. No sauces, no fuss. It was great.
Brent and I were only able to split HALF of one. So we took home one and a half of these 32 oz steaks.
They tell you to bring your own tupperware and cooler. Which we did, but they do provide some clear plastic doggy bags for food. We didn't touch our potatoes or a god 2/3rd of the rolls. It was a TON of food. And it was very reasonably priced at $33 a plate.
Anyways, if you like steak or whole chickens, I totally recommend it. Especially as a getaway in the middle of nowhere!
 |
| Brent leaving, holding our doggy bags of food |
 |
| The gift shop. We didn't go in, but it was a cute little feature |
A ton of deer crossed the road, so I stood out of the sunroof and tried to take a panoramic shot. The deer were long gone by then though.
Again, a bit mixed up, but here are the pictures of Brent enjoying his steak, very seriously.
And this is when the pictures go a little crazy...
Oh, well. Our last day in the cabin we took our time, cooked breakfast and played a few games. We then headed out on our way home. We stopped in Bend and ate at the Old Mill District and walked along the Deschutes river. It was a beautiful snow covered loop across and along the river.
 |
| In Bend they have these bikes you can rent. They were covered in icicles. |
 |
| The Road to Bend |
Did I mention how much deer we saw all over? There were tons of deer. We stopped/slowed down for them quite a few times.
 |
| When we got to the Old Mill and saw all the snow, Brent decided to put on his snow boots. |
While walking, we couldn't really see the trail, but someone had made a nice deep path to follow through the snow.
When we got home my Mom, Aunt Kathy, and the boys had an amazing taco bar all set up for me. With my presents and decorations all over the place. I felt very spoiled. They were so sweet. They even had TWO kind of PIE for my dessert. My favorites! I was very touched at all their efforts and love.
 |
| Jen sent me a gift! She got me the hair curling wand thing I wanted |
A couple random pics from the cabin on the day we left...started to snow again.
It was a great weekend. One I won't soon forget. Can't wait to go eat at that place again! We are taking Mitch there for his graduation dinner. The whole time we were eating our steak we were thinking and talking about how much the boys would love it. Typical parent move.
As my sister is getting married next month, Brent and I already have our next getaway scheduled for the Edgefield. Yay!
