A Question For Those Familiar with I-45 Between Dallas and Houston

There is a Stuckey's in Centersville (unofficially the half way point between here in Dallas).

Stuckey's pie is worth stopping for.

 

There is a place called Sam's that has a superb all-you-can eat BBQ buffet. Furthermore, you get free bread that is more like cake - get it hot and it melts in your mouth. My Dad and I stop there every time we go to Dallas or Arlington for the guitar shows.

The name of the town that Sam's is in eludes me, but its right on the highway and there are billboards letting you know when you're getting close.

 

The name "Sam's" is popular in Fairfield (about 60-90 miles south of Dallas I believe). Sam owns everything in that town I think. So you'll see Sam's this and Sam's that everywhere. So that may be the town you're talking about.

There're some mom & pop type places in Centerville & Madisonville.

 

My wife is from Dallas, so I've made that trip probably close to a hundred times. We also met halfway before a few times....come to think of it; we didn't even live together until several months after we were married--how wierd is that?

Anyway, that's kind of a "damp" area in terms of bars. You have to have memberships, but they aren't usually too expensive. We stayed at a bed and breakfast a few times, and it seems like those are the best bets for the best food (the ones we stayed at also served dinner, and it was definitely a "foodie" type event).

anyway, here's a place that has a "club" inside of it. The menu looks pretty good as well:

http://www.woodbinehoteltexas.com/

If nothing else, someone who runs a bed and breakfast in a SMALL town like Madisonville will be THE person to ask about "just grabbing a beer" and maybe some dinner.

 

Honestly, given the distance & time involved, you' be better served by taking hwy 6 up, and he I-35 down, to Waco.

You're both looking at about 2-2.5 hr's each way to reach the midpoint given all variables if you stay on 45. Seriously - just getting to Huntsville is an ordeal these days on 45...

If you go to Waco he'll have a slightly shorter drive, both have a more scenic route, plus you'll have a much better selection of cool little bars & restaurants...

Oh, and the aggies are HATED in Waco, so there you go.

 

The ride from Houston to Dallas is about as boring as any drive could be.

 

I'm not sure it's exactly true, however. I can make it to Dallas in three hours on a good day, and normally Saturday's a good day. My parents made it from Buffalo (exit 179) to Houston in under two hours last weekend. Plus, if it's an A&M game that weekend, you're gonna have to deal with traffic one way or another.

That said, if you're looking for somewhere to meet, Waco's probably a better option than anywhere on 45, even though it's at least two and a half hours for you. If you want some recommendations for places there, I'm your guy.

 

Until you make a drive out to El Paso.

 

Good point, the drive to El Paso is bad....which is why I do it at night while listening to the entire Led Zep box set, followed by the entire Dylan box set, followed by a audiobook of the unabridged Old Testament, followed by some Ayn Rand.....

 

Heheheh. A friend of mine has got Atlas Shrugged on CD if you need it. That guy is a freak. Alright, I'll stop now, before I fork this thread any further.

 

Saturday would cut down on your I-45 drive time - I'm used to leaving on Fridays where it literally takes almost 2 hours sometimes to get north of Huntsville...

That said, it would still be a shorter drive for your buddy to go to Waco. More of a scenic drive for you though, despite the length. Cool restaurants like Buzzard Billy's dtown. Cool little dives like George's & Scruffy's to drink beer in... I'm a Baylor grad though, so I might be biased.

Man, fball & beers on a Sat. afternoon. How i miss being an undergrad...

Which reminds me, I need to pick which game I'm going to make my annual Waco pilgrimage to to watch us get our asses kicked...

 

Fairfield is about the halfway point. My Grandfather's family has reunions in Fairfield so I have been to that Sam's several times. There really isn't that many places around to eat in the area, so the Waco idea might be better. Its Okay. I can tell you this also RMTex, almost that whole area of the state is dry. So if you want some alcoholic bverages, be sure to bring some.

Also, in Fairfield, UPS trucks from Dallas and Houston meet up and switch trailers, so I'm pretty sure its almost exactly the halfway point between the two cities. Just a piece of useless info to throw in there.

 

Centerville's actually the halfway point. 120 to both cities from there.

 

Yeah, Fairfield is about a half hour north of Centerville.

 

Yep, Fairfield is about half way from the Woodlands/Spring area.

 

There is a terrific barbeque place in Centreville, or Fairfield. It is on the side of the highway. They sell every kind of jerky you can imagine and their link and sliced beef sandwiches are to die for. The place is hardly fancy, but well worth a visit in that area. I am not sure if this place is called "Sam's," or not, but I recalled eating at this place in this general area. It was really, really good. I am not sure if I helped you at all here...