SEPTEMBER 30, 2014
WE MADE IT THROUGH THE NIGHT, in case you’ve been worried about us. If you read yesterday’s post, you already know that Cheyenne was under a tornado watch last night when we went to bed. I got up periodically through the night to check the National Weather Service website, and thank goodness…no tornado! High winds and rain, but no tornado and this morning the watch has been cancelled. However, the weather forecast is for more rain and brisk winds, so we’ve decided to cut short our stay in Wyoming and head south to Colorado in the morning. I want to get an early start, as I suspect I’ll need to drive slowly because of the winds.
GREAT HARVEST BREAD COMPANY. We discovered a gem of a spot for lunch today. It’s called Great Harvest Bread Company. Trip Adviser rates it Number 1 in Cheyenne out of 157 restaurants reviewed. After having lunch there today, I’d add my vote to that and I’m also adding the place to my blog category of eateries worth visiting. Looking back I think I’ve been a little “easy” on rating restaurants worth of mention as favorite eateries we’ve discovered along the way. So I’ve raised the bar, but this spot still easily qualifies. It’s primarily a bakery, and has a huge selection of healthy and tasty bread for sale, as well as scones and other tempting pastries. In addition, there’s an order-at-the-counter restaurant offering a huge selection of tempting sandwiches along with a gourmet coffee selection comparable to Starbucks. All the sandwiches, of course, are prepared with bread fresh from the oven…the loaves can be seen still cooling on the bread racks.
THE OWNER’S PHILOSOPHY. The owner’s philosophy is simple: it’s possible to run a successful business and have fun at the same time. “That’s why we’re up to our elbows in bread dough, why we play music and why we give away slices of bread…because it’s fun” the owner told me. “We love eating it and we love watching other people enjoy it, too,” he added. Whole wheat bread is a house specialty. They start with wheat kernels purchased from family farms in Montana, which produce the finest wheat in the world. The kernels are ground into fresh whole wheat flour every day. Their dough is kneaded by hand and only a few simple ingredients are used in the recipe: whole wheat, water, salt, yeast and a natural sweetener. The result is…well, you’ll have to try it for yourself.
The kitchen-like decor and casual interior compliment the setting.
THIS PLACE IS A WINNER! The sandwich menu is extensive and of course you can “build your own” if you wish. One example from the menu is called “The Mixer.” It’s top round roast beef, Double G Ham, Volpi Genova salame from the hill, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and the owner’s special sauce. Choose your bread. And on and on…whatever strikes your fancy. I had roast beef with so many add-ons I can’t recall all of them, served on multigrain sourdough bread, with an Americano and bottled water sourced from a local mountain stream. Wonderful! If we roll back through Wyoming some day, we’ll for sure stop again at the Great Harvest Bread Company. And if you’re in the area, make it a point to visit…you’ll be glad you did.
