26. Lardo's

Since I’ve started this little chain of praising local breweries and restaurants, let me tll you about one of my favorite little stops in McCall, Idaho called Lardo’s Grill and Saloon. It’s been there forever and I remember it from my childhood to now. Since McCall is Idaho’s mile high town winter is the predominant season of the year. Lardo’s brings comfort and warmth to the cold of that seemingly endless Idaho season. It has a huge pot bellied wood stove that blazes so much warmth that sometimes they have to prop the doors open. You will shake any chill in that old fashioned restaurant with the polished wooden tables and benches. The food ranges from the typical bar fare of burgers to the comfort foods of home—pot roast, pasta dishes and almost any kind of soup, but that, of course, is du jour. The bar offerings are not why I have ever gone there, probably since it’s a place looming from my childhood. But I know they have a good beer offering and that’s enough to satisfy me.

            In adulthood Lardo’s has become a kind of welcoming reminiscence of home as it used to be. It’s a stop I make when I’m travelling south. In my mind it always has a parking lot hidden from view by huge snow banks and skiers and loggers come together in that cozy place for a great meal, warmth against the cold and a moment of enjoying friendships. I’m thankful for that little place on the south end of McCall known as Lardo’s Grill and Saloon.