Awesome Webs -- Our Vacation -- Ridgway

CO -- Ridgway

Ridgway (no "e" -- not "Ridgeway") is on the northeast corner of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway.

Ridgway was the site of much of the filming of John Wayne's True Grit, and is located at the intersection of highways 62 and 550 (Million Dollar Highway).

It also had slightly cheaper gas than Ouray, but more expensive than Silverton or Durango. The Conoco has a car wash, which was handy after the muddy roads upon which we drove.

CR-5 and CR-7 are very close, Last Dollar is not too far; see the San Juan page for details.

Markets:

Mountain Market -- On Hwy. 62, across from the park. This was an amazing find, especially for a tourist town. The market is very upscale, much like Central Market in Texas, and the people are amazingly helpful and friendly.

Dollar Store -- On US-550, just south of Hwy. 62, on the east side of the road. It's just south of the Conoco station. We needed a pan for soup, and they had one that was very reasonable.

Ice Cream:

We'll eventually remember the name -- The only thing more amazing than her ice cream was her service, and the only thing more amazing than her service was her attitude toward the customer. She ran out of the topping I wanted, so she immediately made some more. In a strip center on Hwy. 62, across from the park, immediately east of Mountain Market. If you don't do anything else in Ridgway, stop and get some ice cream. You'll regret it if you don't. The owner is an extremely cordial lady.

Restaurants:

Kate's Place -- Good food, fancy sandwiches. We went back in 2012 and had the same waitress we had in 2011. The service was fantastic. Trivia: The "barber shop" building across the street was where Rooster Cogburn lived in the original True Grit movie.

True Grit Cafe -- Aside from the fact they weren't even there when the movie was filmed (they are on the vacant lot where John Wayne was unloading prisoners), the food is good. Service was excellent, although the waitress said the cafe (as some other restaurants) makes the server pay for people who skip on the check. I think that's chicken-stuff. (There was a waitress killed in Dallas when she tried to collect a check from a group who ran out on them. They ran over her with their car. That should not be the responsibility of the server.)

The sign on the side of the adjacent building is now an interior wall to the cafe. It was displayed prominently in the movie when they were unloading prisoners from the Indian Territory.

Place to Avoid:

Trail Town Still -- Almost a bar fight -- started by the owner. Definitely not what we expected in Ridgway.

We stopped for the "free tour" of the distillery, but the owner ("Doc Joe Alaimo," a veterinarian) couldn't be bothered, so the waitress (Melissa Wright, possibly a co-owner) showed it to us. She was very helpful, but it wasn't much of a tour because she obviously wasn't trained to do it. A few minutes later, a regular customer came in and got into a conversation with Doc Joe about closing our borders. The doctor started arguing (in an raised voice) that all we had to do to stop terrorism was to do away with borders and let people come and go as they please, and the terrorists wouldn't know where to attack us.

There were 3 groups in the bar, and we all looked at Doc Joe like he was crazy. The "local" told him that didn't make any sense, and the bar owner yelled at him to get out of the bar and then went back to the distilling area. The "local" left, as did the other 6 of us -- rather quickly. We didn't feel safe, and it wasn't because of the patrons. Never again will I set foot in that place.

In a social media response to this same complaint, Doc Joe stated another couple was encouraging the "local," and said they weren't welcome back, either. (Joe won't have to worry -- that couple stated, in the parking lot, they'd never return). He also implied we might be the other couple (there were 4 of us, not 2). He stated the guy was not a local, but the guy brought pizza into the restaurant and spoke to Joe and Melissa as if he'd known them forever. He also told us he frequents the establishment. The local -- regardless of origin -- was calm and cool. Contrary to Doc Joe's allegation that the local said he wanted to shoot Mexicans crossing the border, he didn't. His comment was that many countries shoot people coming across the border, and he felt the U. S. should get more serious about its borders.

The only person not having an intelligent, calm conversation was Doc Joe. (We don't recall who started the conversation, but we were there to try some local distilled spirits, not have a discussion on borders. It was a vacation trip with our daughter and son-in-law.) Joe was very irrational, and in spite of his social media "apology (below)," it was left-handed. He apologized, justified his actions, and said he would do it again while being calm. That's not an apology. His "apology" included:

Doc Joe's response in social media

"I formally and publicly apologize for my behavior that day. Normally, in the interest of good business, I stay out of politics, economics, religion, and sports. I also hire only calm, friendly, and professional staff. But I myself am new at this, so when the patron (not a local - though that hardly matters) said that we should 'shoot Mexicans as they cross the border'… Well, In retrospect, I know I should not have lost my temper and thrown him out like I did. If it ever happens again I hope that I remember to be calm, friendly, and professional as I throw him out. Comments like that are not welcome at Trail Town Still. Oh. I recall there was another couple - encouraging him. Hopefully that was not you. They’re not welcome back either. Sorry again for yelling."

On a personal note, I don't know how Melissa puts up with Doc Joe. She tried to calm him down, but couldn't. Joe was acting irrationally to the point I was getting concerned for our safety. In spite of what appears to be a rather hostile work environment, Melissa treated us as if we were the only customer they'd ever had. She must enjoy Ridgway, as she could manage any fine restaurant and do an amazing job. As for "Doc Joe," he is now the running joke of our vacation.

Doc Joe's response to our Yelp entry

(Does this guy show class, or what?)

"I thought you guys were jerks when you were here and look. You are jerks even at home."

We received the message above from "Doc Joe." Visitors in the bar included a "local," several couples, and a family of four. The interesting thing is he has no idea who we were; his previous comment ("I recall there was another couple - encouraging him. Hopefully that was not you.") clarifies that.

His comments clearly define his level of class and what he thinks of his customers, and demonstrates why he was quite capable of starting a fight in his own bar.

"Yelp" is a registered trademark of Yelp.

PICTURES

(Some may have been taken while moving, so please pardon them being a little blurry.)

Click on thumbnails to view full-size picture.