Seabrook Siren Song
We’d love to be sharing details of a recent culinary tour of Tuscany, but we haven’t been to Italy lately. We’ve been eating hamburgers in Seabrook, Texas.
Not that we mind in the least.
We were off to learn more about the intriguing story of the El Lago Coffee Company when we passed Tookie’s Burgers. It was just sitting there on Hwy. 146, all brightly painted with its cute little mermaid sign out front. Talk about a siren’s song: it was almost lunchtime and we love their burgers. We especially love the one called “Stomp’s Icehouse Special”. It’s loaded with our favorite green vegetable — Jalapenos.
Tookie’s is an institution. Since 1975, hurricanes have tried …to blow it away; each storm has filled the place with chin-deep water; but Tookie’s keeps coming back with the identical, addictive burgers. The menu includes a BLT, a salad or two, and a few other non-burger items, but we can’t imagine ordering them. Maybe one day, one of us will try the refried bean burger with its crushed Fritos and spicy hot sauce, but I wouldn’t count on it. The Stomp’s is that good!
The home of the El Lago Coffee Company, is just down the street from Tookie’s. A sign on an old house reads, “Joe’s Place”. It’s mostly an antique store. Its rooms are chocked full of vintage oddities displayed in artistic disarray. A Hollywood set designer couldn’t do better. In a dimly lit back room, there are a few overstuffed chairs where regulars gather to visit. Talk is of boats and boat people. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee fills the air.
There’s a friendly vibe, but not a single hint of the owners’ strong commitment to pioneering eco-friendly sail transport. We had to read about that on CNN. It’s seems everything is very green and organic. The Guatemalan coffee beans are roasted weekly, just behind the store. Maybe that’s why the coffee is so incredibly good.
Joe and Terry Butcher, (owners of El Lago Coffee), had planned to transport coffee beans on their own sailing ship. New Year’s Eve 2007, their ship encountered the high winds and waves of Hurricane Olga. A Coast Guard rescue on New Year’s Day saved their lives, but the ship and its cargo were lost. The following September, Hurricane Ike unleashed his fury on their place of business, destroying it. Still, they moved forward with their plans for a premium coffee brand, continuing to do business just steps from an unpredictable ocean.
If you want to try a cup, visit Joe’s Place at 1206 Moskowitz Avenue near the Post Office. Be sure and browse their eclectic collection of antiques. You’ll find it tough to leave empty-handed.
You can also stop by the Seabrook Waffle Company just down the street for a French press pot full. They offer authentic Belgium waffles, made the real way, from dough sweetened with imported pearl sugar. Those waffles sing their own siren song! 
Seabrook was fun. We hope you have a great day too!