Kansas State Travel Blog: Topeka’s Blind Tiger a Must-Try Food Spot

TOPEKA — Jackson Lavarnway and I traveled Friday from Tulsa to the capital city of Kansas, where we will stay before waking early on Saturday to finish our trip to Manhattan, Kansas, to cover OSU-Kansas State on Saturday morning.

Manhattan had no rooms in the city — or within 20 miles, for that matter — because of homecoming weekend and poor planning on the part of yours truly.

The first day was full of laughs, laments and excitement, the latter of which came from the fact that I had decided before the trip to take notes for a travel blog on the site. Turned out to be an excellent idea, even if I’m the only one that ends up enjoying it.

The trip started with a trip to Phillips 66 to grab snacks and go — Jackson got the new “sweet heat” skittles to try, and I got beef jerky that the Sahara Desert would accuse of being dry.

On the skittles: I have to say, I’m more of a sour skittles guy, but they were surprisingly tolerable. I ride with sour and would contend original is quite a bit better, but the sweet heat was an interesting curveball I recommend sampling. Now, that beef jerky. Woof! I feel confident saying construction paper might have tasted better, though the two would be roughly the same in texture. I can’t in good faith recommend gas station jerky again.

But I digress.

The commute itself was as much fun as the brief experience in Topeka. “We’re definitely in Kansas,” was a direct quote from Jackson, and it was applicable for about three hours. Plains, silos, and a nothing-burger of a view was the norm. Plus rain. Lots and lots of rain.

The only excitement we saw turned out to be an unexpected test in patience. We got stuck behind an oversized load for 70 miles on an off-the-path highway and went roughly 45 miles per hour, during which we passed an Amish couple in a horse-drawn carriage (in Scranton, Kansas, no less!). We weren’t going much faster than them, thanks to the oversized load, which says a lot about how the stretch run of our trip to Topeka went.

It made both of us think of this Mose scene.

Also, this was our view for like two hours. I wish I was exaggerating. The guy in the car in front of me definitely was enjoying the pile of cars piling up behind him (but I’m not bitter!)

It was a lesson well-received, though. During our stay behind the load of trucks, we saw a black Honda Civic decide it was done waiting, floored it, and tried bolting past both my car and the entourage around the truck hauling what appeared to be an oversized water tower on steroids.

The Civic didn’t make it, though, and when an oncoming semi challenged it unexpectedly, the Civic bailed on the shoulder and came to a screeching halt just before the semi was readying to smash it to pieces. It was legitimately terrifying. I yelled. Jackson squealed. We almost saw a Civic get crushed. Needless to say, I didn’t try passing after seeing that.

As for the food scene (smooth transition, huh?), we really only got to enjoy one spot after leaving T-town around noon and arriving at 5. But boy, was it a good one.

We went to the Blind Tiger in Topeka on Friday night at the recommendation of some great fans on Twitter. We ordered Say Cheese Fries.

Jackson, however, Said Uncle about five bites in.

It was a lot of food. This was an appetizer!

“Looks like death,” Porter said of this photo when I texted it to him.

If death is a food coma, then yes, I agree. It was absolutely death.

For the main course, I ordered the chicken fried steak with mac and cheese and seasoned fries. Jackson ordered a pulled pork sandwich and mac and cheese. Neither myself nor Jax could finish. Our leftovers will sit in the hotel fridge and remain untouched.

Blame the cheese fries.

We’ll make the trip to Manhattan bright and early to cover Oklahoma State-Kansas State. A win, which is expected, gets OSU to 2-2 in league play. A loss? Bowl eligibility gets increasingly more difficult to attain.

Can’t blame the cheese fries.

Random sights

• Before the trip, I swapped cars with the wife in downtown Tulsa at her place of employment. She gets better gas mileage than I. Jax and I snapped a pic.

• Jackson’s preferred drink of choice: Dr. Pepper. He turns 21 in 9 days.

• Spotted in a podunk city in Kansas: a store called Yard Birds. I laughed.

• Also spotted: Porter drugs. I laughed, again.