Oregon Coast - Blue Heron French Cheese Company

When heading out to the coast via Tillamook. you have a choice of cheese makers. To the right is the Tillamook Cheese factory - generally the more popular choice - and to the left is Blue Heron French Cheese Company. We finally made it to Blue Heron after meaning to go for a long time.

I definitely like the integration of the blue heron theme. This appears in mosaic, sculpture, and signs...

as well as the white buildings with blue trim.

Blue Heron is more charmingly pretty, as far as that goes.

If I am honest, though, while there was definitely some interest in just seeing what the other one was like, the big draw for me was the petting zoo.

I love donkeys!

It's not that it was a particularly organized petting zoo. Animals are in different locations, and not always easily accessible.

Still, they are there, and the food for the animals is only a dollar for a pretty reasonable amount.

You might think the petting zoo is an afterthought, but then inside there are portraits of the animals on the wall.

Clearly the animals are family, and really, this is a family business.

I began to understand the difference better when we went inside. Tillamook was created as a farmers' co-op. It is bigger, and more efficiency and business-oriented. Also they make a hard, English cheese.

Blue Heron is a family business that makes brie, a soft French cheese. They are smaller, and perhaps more relaxed. Also, there is a lot more wine.

It's not a rivalry - Blue Heron serves Tillamook ice cream - they are just different, each with their own place, and at their own pace.

http://www.blueheronoregon.com/

Oregon Coast - Pronto Pup in Rockaway Beach

It was an Oregonian article that started our desire to visit Pronto Pup: https://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2016/03/oregon_corndog_history_reaches.html

It took us a while to get there, but if they were going to celebrate their origins by strapping a giant corn dog to the roof of their restaurant, we were going to go see it.

They really do carry out the theme. In addition to the top dog, the mechanical dog, and merchandise, even the gas tank kind of looks like a corn dog.

We tried regular corn dogs, cheese-filled corn dogs, and a fried pickle on a stick.

Deep frying in a corn batter mix makes many things more delicious. Putting them on a stick just makes them fun.

There were also tater tots, which were pretty good.

Being able to see the insides is also important.

The biggest disappointment was probably the riding corn dog. I pictured more of a bucking mechanical bull situation, where staying on was a challenge. From a liability perspective, the reality of a modified children's ride makes more sense.

The menu allows you to order individual items or in groups of three, and the threesomes are generally the better deal. My one regret is that none of us tried the foot long, but it sounded like an awfully big commitment.

The store honors its origins, not only with informational signs, but also with a nice retro feel for the decor.

It was a fun stop. It might be a long ride for just a corn dog, where you can get corn dogs and tater tots many places that are closer to home. These are good, but they are not better than what you can get elsewhere.

However, they are more fun, and if you get to that fun but taking a beautiful drive out to the coast on a sunny day, going past interesting rock formations and charming gift shops, maybe stopping at some of the other attractions along the coast, well, that can be a pretty good day.

http://www.originalprontopup.com/

North Plains, Oregon - Elephant Garlic Festival

Last night we checked out the 21st annual Elephant Garlic Festival in North Plains.

We got there right around dinner time, but the main point of entry is right by the food vendors. Most of us went to the Rice Plate, but one of us had a great gyro, which kind of made me wish I had gotten a gyro from Getta Gyro.

The BBQ buns were really good though.

None of that may sound particularly garlicky, but most stands offered at least something that featured garlic, and often it was highly featured.

A lot of it sounded good, but I don't know that I could ever try the garlic lemonade.

For the regular vendors, yes, there was elephant garlic to be had, and I believe other types of garlic as well, but when you see those really big bulbs, you know that is the festival's heart right there.

Or it might be more accurate to say the festival's heart is the city of North Plains. There is a strong sense of community there, especially with so many local organizations and churches participating.

I can imagine the festival being fun for cooks, with the opportunity to not only purchase fresh garlic but many garlic based mixtures and products.

However, that is not all you can get. There are many other crafters there, with headbands, stamps, photos, and every type of barrette you can imagine.

I don't know if it is always this well-balanced, but the music was both audible, but not so overpowering that you could not have conversations. That was appreciated.

There are also opportunities for education.

Like you could doubt that garlic is an allium when you see them like this.

Other than the many vendors, there are different events for each day, including a car show and three different distances for running.

It is possible that some of our interest in attending came from the new signage. The old one was fine, but this is adorable.

After all, it's not just garlic; it's Elephant Garlic! Shouldn't that mean something?

And you can always take some of it home with you.

The 2018 Elephant Garlic Festival runs through tomorrow, August 12th, at Jessie Mays Community Park in North Plains.

http://funstinks.com/