Ho Jo's

A couple weeks ago, my friend Ann and I went for lunch at Howard Johnson's in Lake Placid. This Ho Jo's is one of the few remaining, if not the last.  We decided on Ho Jo's because I thought I wanted some soup and then I felt like breakfast instead, even though it was noon.  

I remember being a kid visiting Lake Placid with my family and coming here often, probably because all I ate were grilled cheese sandwiches and chocolate milk.  On occasion I would pick off my mother's Food Bar plate.  

Amazingly, this Howard Johnson's really hasn't changed much.  There's still that "old school" feel with the vinyl booths and neon buffet sign.  The big window in the back of the restaurant still looks out on a nice garden.  I had gone to Ho Jo's a couple years back and wasn't that impressed, but then Drew and I met my sister and her family there for breakfast this summer and we all had a great meal.  

Anyways, once we were seated I ordered myself a chocolate milk.  I was thrilled that my drink arrived with a bendy straw!  I couldn't decide on soup or breakfast so I went with one of the lunch specials, Cup of Chicken Noodle Soup and the Western Egg Sandwich.  

Ann commented, "Those noodles look like you could build a log cabin with them."  The noodles were definitely not flimsy, they were nice and thick.

Ho Jo's Western Egg Sandwich is an egg fried with peppers and onions with some ham and melted cheese.  The menu tells you that it comes with a side of fruit for your health.  What a bonus! 

 Ann ordered herself some breakfast for lunch.  She had a combination of pancakes, meat and poached eggs.  

I love pancakes but usually don't order them at restaurants because I'm a bit of a maple syrup snob and need the real thing.  Ann isn't bothered by this since she rarely uses syrup on her pancakes, just butter.  I asked Ann how her breakfast was and she said it was good except that she didn't like that there was some water in the bowl the eggs came in.  She did say that happens almost everywhere.  I guess Ho Jo's isn't the only one to blame for slimy eggs.

We both left feeling satisfied after a good inexpensive meal.  I have to be honest about one thing though, my chocolate milk was almost the same price as my lunch special.  Do you think it was the fun, flexible straw?  If so, I should have brought it home with me to get my money's worth.