Recently, I spent a week in the Lake of the Ozarks area doing some distribution work — and squeezing in a bit of fun along the way.  I timed my trip to coincide with my family’s annual trip there.  The area is loaded with fun activities and cool restaurants.

The first place I hit was Dog Days, a lively spot for lakefront dining.  After the drive from Chicago, I inhaled most of the food quickly, but I do remember the mango shrimp appetizer was excellent.  Later in the evening, Dale Blue hit the stage and provided musical entertainment.

We had heard good things about Schmidty’s Tiki Bar, but had a bit of trouble finding it.  It was well worth the effort as we enjoyed the best pizza of the trip there.  We also had the best drink of the trip, a Schmidty concoction called apple pie a la mode.  Yes, there really is a Schmidty.  He’s a fun-loving, laid-back local serving up big laughs, great food and large drinks.

There is also a nondescript place called Buck’s, which reportedly serves the best hamburger around.  Being a non-beef eater, I chose the chicken strips (which were excellent), but my friends did enjoy the burgers.  I mention this place because it had the best fountain Coke in the area.

I need to explain one thing about the Coke on this trip.  Based on advertising, I thought Coke ruled the Ozarks.  There is even a bottling plant in the area.  Yet, either the Ozarks are very Pepsi-friendly or I managed to hit a disproportionate number of places that served Pepsi.

Altogether it was a trip filled with surprisingly good food.  I expected standard bar food accompanied by Jimmy Buffett wannabes.  I got very good food (even when it was standard bar fare) and pretty good musicians (even when they were Jimmy Buffett-esque). Oh sure, some of the places in the Ozarks had campy names, like Bambooze, Jolly Rogers and Shady Gators, but most places had their own unique feel.  We never had to go to any franchise restaurant during the trip. When you combine the food and entertainment with miles and miles of open water and beaches, you have a very underrated vacation spot.

–John Wroblewski, distribution specialist Global Traveler has joined the world of social marketing. For breaking news, special offers and much more, fan us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @Gtmag!