Arby's Onion Rings

 I'm not sure why, but onion rings aren't the first thing on my mind when I think of Arbys. . . but they should be high on the list, because they are REALLY good.  They are a sturdy, middle of the road sort of onion ring.  They have a sort of combination of batter/ crumb coating that is definitely meant for freezing and quickly frying.  They aren't as sweet as say, Sonic's onion rings, but they lack some of the funky bitterness that other rings have, too.  I would say, make it a priority alongside your roast beef sandwich next time!

Surprise! Onion Rings at Paula Deen's Family Kitchen

Onion rings have been sighted at Paula Deen's Family Kitchen on the meatloaf.  On the menu they are referred to as "tobacco onions."  Tobacco onions are a very rare name for these thin crispy onion rings these days.  They got their name by looking like tobacco.  I don't think Paula Deen's were genuine tobacco onions- they were too thick.  But they were very good for onion rings! This is how to make me love meat loaf! 

 When they asked if we wanted anything else we said we wanted to order more onion rings.... but apparently they thought we were joking and never brought us any. 

Paul Deen's restaurant has amazing, rich southern food.  A single biscuit alone will stuff you.  I loved the chicken and dumplings. Yum!

Onion Rings at the Big Texan, Amarillo, TX

Is the Big Texan Steak Ranch a tourist trap?  Can a person without the stomach of a superhero eat 72 oz of steak, a baked potato, salad, and some shrimp in one setting?  I'm really not sure about either of those things.  

I am 100% certain, however, that even if you have to drive somewhat out of your way and barely get to the Big Texan right before closing time, the onion rings alone are completely worth it.

They are at the very summit of my onion rings favorites list.  They might actually BE my favorite onion rings of their kind in the whole United States. 

They even serve a bonus one with the smoked baby back ribs appetizer!  I love bonus onion rings!

  

They taste like they are fried in Colonel Sanders fried chicken secret recipe.  They KFC type coating is super addictive.  This means they have tons of flavor and are very flaky.  The flakes fall all over the place when you bite into them.  Then, because the coating is so good you have to scoop it up into a pile and eat it anyway!  These rings come with plenty of ranch and BBQ sauce if you ask.  If you still want to try more fried food, they are also one of the few places in the world where you can order Rocky Mountain Oysters (Calf Fries- if you don't know what this is then go ahead and google it since I don't really want to explain this part of the cow on my onion ring blog).

Onion Rings at Bryce Canyon

The onion rings I found at Bryce Canyon, UT are only slightly farther from the actual canyon than the Grand Canyon's onion rings are from the Grand Canyon.  They can be found at Ruby's Canyon Diner, a little restaurant near Ruby's Inn.

 These o-rings are of the more rare breadcrumb-coated variety!  This type of onion ring has a super thick coating. So thick, in fact, that by the time the breading is cooked on the outside, the onions inside are so incredibly tough that you can't chew through them.  Not a single person in our family could chomp through them.  So, behold the innards!

They were fully flavored yellow onions, too, so no sweetness there.  The breading was amazing on it's own, though.  Unfortunately, we didn't have any dipping sauces for it, so we weren't exactly fighting over the last onion rings.

One cool thing about Ruby's diner was seeing the real cowboys eating there as they came over for lunch from across the street where they worked at Ruby's Horseback Adventures.  

As we walked around the rim of the canyon, we would see some very nice horse trails that took riders to the gorgeous canyon.  

Onion Rings at the Grand Canyon!

The bustling south rim of the Grand Canyon is vastly different from the peaceful north rim.  Tour busses take visitors from lookout point to lookout point and figuring out where to eat or picnic is kind of confusing, even if you have been there before.  But, don't worry!  There are onion rings to be found at Maswick cafeteria.  

Maswick lodge is one of the shuttle stops and if you walk right in you will find what some refer to as the cafeteria or food court.  The food court has several stations where you can get a variety of foods.  The grill on the left is where you can grab things like relatively inexpensive bacon grilled cheese sandwiches and vastly more pricey sides of onion rings.  The onion rings are beer-batter type, very crispy, well prepared and crispy.  The onions were relatively sweet, and although they cost more than four dollars for a side, it was money well spent for such a remote location.

 The only problem was that when you tried to eat just one, they all stuck together!  Haha!  Here you can see a lovely picture of the grand canyon in the background of my stuck-together rings.

Note that there is no actual view of the canyon from this lodge, but it has tons of seating for large groups and families so it takes away some of the crowded rush and wait times of some of the smaller, fancier restaurants,  Plus, it is a highly convenient bus stop!

As a bonus, you can find the much coveted Navajo taco (also known as Indian fry bread) at the Maswick food court as well.  Because, as you know, fried food begets fried food.  The great thing about this dish at the Grand Canyon is they let you choose more than one meat if you want (ground beef taco or shredded chicken) and put on custom toppings like unto a Subway restaurant. It is enough to feed two people, for sure!

I would highly recommend the Maswick food court at the Grand Canyon as a stress-free alternative to packing a picnic.

If you do want an awesome picnic spot, I would suggest a more remote place that you must drive your car to-- the Desert View Watch tower, which is about a half hour east of the main Grand Canyon sites.  Right now the road is under construction so delays can be a pain but there are lots of tables with an actual distant view of the canyon and the view of river from the watchtower in the shallower canyon is really fun.