BILL
AND KATE'S
UNOFFICIAL
GUIDE TO
TO J-TOWN'S
BESTS
 |
We are
William Wojnar, Phd, of the JC music department and Katherine Stevenson,
MA, of the JC foreign language department, both long-time veterans of Jamestown
and fans of NoDak. In our humble opinion (IOHO) Jamestown's unique offerings
and local color are not easily discovered by the casual observer who cannot
see beyond the fast food chains, the various generic malls and marts and
the somnolent downtown.
It is far too
easy to compile a list of esthetically challenged establishments in town,
so we chose not to dwell on the worsts. Instead, we have chosen to reveal
some of the hidden gems of the great big buffalo town. Please send us your
email comments on our choices and
your suggestions for other "bests" of Jamestown.
GENERAL
CATEGORIES
-
Best Place for
a Fine Cup of Java: The C-Store at the College. Unfortunately not open in
the summer. After that you're on your own in this town.
-
Best Pizza in
Town: Lil's Downtown Restaurants (The Continental Room, the Continental
Lounge and the Pizza Palace) - really good prices on the "we make it, you
bake it" pizzas! Try the Lil's or the Dakota Special Pizzas. Bill loves
the Kosher Salami. Now if they can only get the stale cigarette smell out
of everything they do.
-
Kate's List of
Best Vegetarian Choices:
-
Garden Burger
at Lil's
-
Lavosh at Lil's
-
Vegetarian Pizza
at Lil's
-
Soybean Curd and
Vegetables at the Chinese Restaurants
-
Beans and Rice
at Paradiso's - A BEST BUY
-
Garden Burger
at the Jimmie Grill
-
Jalapeno Burrito
at Paradiso's (you have to ask them to put jalapenos into their bean burrito
-- it's very tasty!)
-
Best Place to
Find Organic and Vegetarian Food: The Jamestown Food Co-op and the Jamestown
Farmers Market. Unfortunately, one is virtually invisible and the other
is seasonal. Contact Kate for Food Co-op Information.
-
Best Regional
Specialties: Knoepfle Soup (there are as many varieties of this soup as
there are permutations in the spelling) and Peach Kuchen (pronounced "koogen"
by those in the know)
-
Best Laundromat:
The new laundromat where the Sunshine Laundry used to be (the people are great and there's a lovely view to
McElroy Park and the Buffalo!)
-
Best Furniture,
Dishware and Clothing Finds: The ARC-Aid burned down and there's no place in
town that has replaced it. Sure, the Salvation Army has moved to the old Ruby's,
but it's pretty skanky there due to years and years of smoking that have
permeated every cell of the carpet and panelling. I guess the next best thing is
to go rummage sale-ing.
-
Best Brews:
-
Homebrews of Several
Friends
-
22 oz. Red River
at Lil's -- you really start to think you're standing IN the river!
-
(Summer Only)
Rooftop of the Frontier Fort near the Buffalo -- for the ambience and the
view; definitely not for the quality of refreshments available!
-
Best Free Food at Happy
Hour: Lil's
-
Best Dive Bar:
The Hitchin' Post (NOTHING on tap. Don't even ask.)
-
Best Imitation
of the Cantina Crowd from STAR WARS: The Trading Post
-
Best Natural Environment
for Observing Local Wildlife: The Wonder Bar
Return
to List
Best Performance
Acoustics: St. James Basilica
Bill's Choice
of Best Church Organ: Trinity Lutheran (for a good low rattle, check out
the 16' Posaune) -- though the new Jamstown College Organ, the Black-Schlossman
Memorial Organ in Voorhees Chapel, is now first among Bill's favorites.
Return
to List
Widest Range of
Stories of JC Faculty and Alumni: Professor Emerita Helen Hample (JC alumna,
past homecoming queen and erstwhile Dean of Women)
Best Office
Services: Lori Zimney, daugher-in-law of Lorraine Zimney, Godmother of the Woj's Dissertation
Best JC Spur
Stories: Joanne (Bostyan) Geinert -- look for her in
Nortonville these days
Return
to List
Best Tour of Jamestown:
The Tacky Tour (contact us to book one!)
Best Walking
Routes: Along the spillways of the Jamestown Reservoir and the paths on
the river across the McElroy footbridge and below the buffalo.
Best Tourist
Sites:
-
The ceiling of
St. James Basilica
-
The stained glass
and furnishings of Grace Episcopal Church
-
The Tiffany stained
glass and Black Forest mural in the Stutsman County Museum
-
The pressed tin
walls and ceilings of the Stutsman County Courthouse
-
The stained glass
and art deco detailing in the Alfred Dickey Public Library
-
The Fort Seward
Museum (when the owners open it up) and the Fort Seward 20th Infantry encampments
(summer only)
-
Where The Rivers
Meet - Klaus Park
-
Footbridges of
Klaus and Nickeus Parks
Most Pleasant
Blending of Nature and Architecture: JC Campus (we find the campus much
prettier than the town...)
Best Places
to Go for Peace and Quiet: Pipestem Reservoir, Smoky's Landing and Elks
Park
Best Fall Suppers:
-
Lutefisk and Meatball
Supper served by the men of Jamestown's Trinity Lutheran Church
-
German-Russian
Supper at Jamestown's St. John's Lutheran
-
The Streeter Buffalo
Feed -- definitely worth the drive
-
Wishek Sauerkraut
Days -- be prepared to hear German
Note: Kate's theory
is that the deep culture of this area is revealed in the importance of
fall suppers and rummage/garage sales in keeping people connected to each
other in the community. If you don't know what a fall supper is, you're
probably not a NoDak. If you do know what one is, you know that people
around here flock to fall suppers like swallows to San Juan Capistrano
and arrange their schedules to hit their favorite fall suppers at all costs.
Return
to List
Best Thing about
Blizzards: Blizzard Party Taffy Pulling!
Best Ole and
Lena Humor: Mrs. June Skavang Smith, now of Hackensack MN.
Best Winter
Fun: Indoor Ice Skating at the Wilson Arena (JC people should get in free with
college ID)
Best Clean
Norwegian Joke Kate Has Heard Recently:
A Norwegian
man married a Palestinian woman and they had a son. They decided to give
the baby a name that reflected both cultures, so they named him Yassir
You Betcha (Note: if you don't get the humor here, ask a local to explain
it to you).
Return to
Kate's
Roadside Attraction or to Kate
Stevenson's Hotlists
Bill and
Kate's Bests of Jamestown/stevenso@jc.edu