Gary I.
Yelp
The Flagge der Bundesrepublik Deutschland/Germany with its distinctive black, red, golden yellow horizontal stripes fluttering in the wind of Arizona high country caught my eye driving along old Route 66 in Seligman which means blessed man in German.
Westside Lilo Café with a gift shop featuring Route 66 memorabilia is closer to an American diner in terms of its menu with a bit of Mexican. There are only three German items: Bratwurst Sausage in a sour dough roll; Jäger Schnitzel; Schweine/pork Schnitzel and not Wiener Schnitzel since by definition, the meat must be veal.
1) I chose the Jäger Schweine Schnitzel which is pork pounded to a thin steak, lightly breaded and pan fried. Reminds me of the Italian Costoletta Milanese.
Jäger (yay gehr) means hunter, and this savory brown sauce is chockful of mushrooms which was traditionally from the German forests. This gravy has a satisfying brothy Umami.
Ordered accompanying French fries crispy, but due to the high heat, they came out dark brown and still not having that Belgian style twice fried light crispiness although I was told they were hand cut potatoes.
The mushy, dull green peas & carrots look as though they come out of a can from the 1950's. A mini roll rounded out the dish. The Jäger Schnitzel portion was fine.
Perhaps ditching the canned peas & carrots and replacing it with a little salad would be more refreshing. And brining the cut potatoes and frying them under lower heat twice would create better French fries.
2) Coconut Cream Pie: The light yellow filling was thickened, luscious, dairy rich. Standard pie crust a-ok. But the whipped cream tasted like coolwhip with a slight chemical after taste. I had to scrape it off which unfortunately also eliminated the toasted coconut flakes.
3) Carrot Cake Muffin was another matter. Cake is moist, soft, velvety. Sweetened and aromatic by brown sugar toastiness, touch of vanilla.
The off white cream cheese frosting is thick, creamy sweet, but the crowning flavour is a good dose of almond extract that adds a refreshing, nutty scent that makes this carrot cake so alluring. Half a walnut crowns the top.
2-3a) Iced Tea plain since I planned to drive all the way to L.A. right afterward.
What impressed me was my waitress Kris and her dark haired working partner. When a huge crowd suddenly came in, they went into high gear coördinating their movements and strategies like well planned choreography.
Remembering many multiple orders, literally running from the kitchen window to various tables to deliver the right dish to each customer. Of course, there were customer requests to fulfill along the way.
All this was done with smiles and rushed friendly small talk. They are thoughtful, kind, charming, enthusiastic about their jobs which is so very refreshing and moving. I jokingly told Kris that she didn't have to go to the gym.
Food here is good, but the two waitresses make coming to Westside Lilo a joy. Their warm banter among themselves & the customers make this a feel good place.
Earlier, they made time to give bons mots to an older gentleman who came every Tuesday like clockwork making him feel very welcome. Truly the spirit of Route 66 is exemplified by these two "Laverne & Shirleys". This was around 6pm on April 9th 2024. One day after the total solar eclipse that swept through the U.S. farther east.
So glad I experienced the love. Lilo, if you're reading this, please give them a well deserved raise if you haven't done so already. "Geben Sie ihnen eine Gehaltserhöhung doch bitte."
5 stars for the kind service. The food although good, in this case, is incidental.