I knew Sterling, CO would be on my list from the get go. The primary reason being I have friends there. Then, when my friend offered to rewire LuLu, of course that meant I’d visit! Details of the rewiring aside, I actually spent a fair bit of time there and had a great time. It is cute town well worth the visit!
Sterling has that small town feel but is just big enough to have larger town businesses. Being in the same city as a Home Depot was like a dream come true! Exploring the town and seeing how it had developed was delightful.
The town is located in North Eastern Colorado, not too far from the Nebraska border. This part of Colorado is high plains and you can expect some pretty nasty storms in the area come the summer months. It’s also farmland and an agricultural community so you can expect wide open swaths of land. Of course, I planned for spring sunshine and instead got spring showers.
Immediately upon driving into Sterling, I had to acknowledge just how cute it was. The highway is like any other, but the residential area is so quaint. With all the rain they’ve had, it was also super green. Almost immediately, I found a new place to add to my list to explore! My friends live pretty close to each other and also pretty close to this cute little park and downtown – the perfect spot, if you ask me!
I had set aside some things that I had found that looked neat, but to be perfectly honest, I think the “Visit Sterling” websites really missed the mark. Once I got there, there were definitely things to do that weren’t on those lists.
Simkins Parlor
By far my favorite place in Sterling has to be Simkins Parlor. It’s everything you could want. Cafe with sandwiches, coffees, ice cream, desserts, smoothies, shakes. I went three times just because there was so much to try! I started out my first day just getting ice cream. The Caramel Lovers Sundae – wow, was it both delicious and beautiful!
The next day, I had to try their jalapeno popper grilled cheese sandwich. I’m a grilled cheese connoisseur and when a place has fancy grilled cheese, I have to try it! It featured the classic combination of cream cheese, jalapenos, bacon, and cheddar. With that I had a side of kettle chips and raspberry mango refresher. The refresher is unexpected but quite perfect. Instead of ice cream or yogurt, it was made with apple juice and frozen fruit, giving it that homemade smoothie taste in the best way.
The sandwich was good, but under-seasoned for my taste. The richness of the ingredients really could have used something to bring them together a little better, even if it was just salt and pepper. I think most people rely on the bacon to add the salt, but I think in this case the vinegar of the jalapenos plus the cream cheese toned it down too much. My only other critique would be that it would be much better with roasted jalapenos to give that charred flavor, instead of the vinegar taste of pickled jalapenos.
For my third visit, I went with a friend. He had The Billy Bob (William Robert) sandwich and I had the cabbage pocket. I would highly recommend both. The pocket was the perfect size for lunch and The Billy Bob was definitely the superior sandwich. If you’re going the sandwich route – opt for Billy Bob!
Afterward we shared their Simkins Sampler, which is a 6-scoop flight of ice cream. I’ve never been to an ice cream shop that offers one and I was in heaven. It doesn’t matter if its drinks, apps, or dessert – give me a small piece of each and I’m the happiest!
Other than food, the atmosphere was great. It was cute and filled with antiques as its original opening date was about 100 years ago (in the same location even)! There were cards and some board games, along with some couch seating. I also happened upon this cute little Blind Date with a Book (below).
I’d never heard of it before, but apparently you just pick a book willy-nilly based on genre and then you read it! I kind of want to get one started near me, if for no other reason than to go book shopping at the thrift store. The person managing it did an excellent job with display, might I add.
North Sterling State Park
North Sterling State Park and North Sterling Reservoir was a brief visit, but I can’t wait to go back. This area is so pretty! We started off by just taking a drive through the park. The camp spots and picnic sites were cute and everything was so green. It wasn’t overly crowded which is always a plus and I can easily see myself being happy parking LuLu there. We actually kept driving and ended up in Nebraska on accident, but we found some really pretty scenery along the way.
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It was along this drive that I saw my first confirmed Burrowing Owl! It was two, actually, sitting on fence posts. The first one flew away once we stopped and the second one just gave that adorable little “seriously? Move along” look. I love owls and this species might have just claimed my heart!
Sterling Tree Walk
The Sterling Tree Walk was something I had read about in multiple places. It wasn’t a surprise that the friend who lives in Sterling didn’t even know it was a thing, though. While I was spending some time at Simkins, I thought about taking a tour to see them all. When I found out that some of them were less than accessible and others had been bronzed, I lost a little bit of interest and decided I might not spend the time seeking them out.
Come to find out a few days later, they keep a pair in the public library! And not only that – they also had postcards! I thought it would be a fun first Patreon send off so I had to get one. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any great pictures because of the lighting of the library. I can confirm that the artistry is gorgeous. I don’t know if I’d tell you to seek them out, but if you’re nearby one you should definitely stop to take in the craftsmanship!
Sam & Louie’s Italian Restaurant
This was a place that is a chain (perhaps regional?) but it had a pretty cute non-corporate vibe to it. My friends could vouch that all of their food was good and next time I’m there, that’s going to be my first stop!
First, I must sing the praises that comes with any restaurant that serves up mac & cheese bites as an appetizer. Its one of my favorites and so hard to find. There wasn’t anything special about them but they absolutely scratched the itch!
We shared a pizza and it was so tasty not only right out of the oven, but also room temperature, and even out of the fridge the next day. My first experience with pineapple on pizza, we had the Sweet and Spicy pizza. It came with a cream cheese base – YUM! Topped with pepperoni and pineapple (of course), it also had jalapenos. The combination was perfect and the funniest part is that I think I like pineapple on pizza more than I like Canadian bacon on pizza. Classic pairing, I know, but I just can’t stand Canadian bacon.
Next Time
I’ll actually be in Sterling again soon, so there’s a few things I’d still like to do. First of all, if you read last week’s blog, you know I went to the Overland Trail. It was flooded so I’m hoping the water has receded enough to be passable so I can continue exploring.
I also hope to spend more time out at the reservoir. I haven’t had my kayak out this year yet, so I’m considering taking it with me to get some paddling in. If nothing else, I at least hope to get my toes wet!
There is one other place I happened upon that looks so cool! While trying to find the Sterling Public Library, I ended up at the Sterling Historic Public Library. Two very different things. The latter is no longer a library, but instead houses the Old Library Mercantile and Coffee Shop. The outside looks darling as does the pictures of the interior. As much as I’d wanted to stop when I happened upon it, I was on a mission so I’m saving it for another day.
I also made a new friend along the way. Her name is Noodle and she is a well-loved stray. She has some buns in that oven so its very possible there will be kittens by the time I see her next.
Until next time! Any places I missed that you think I should absolutely check out? Let me know in the comments!
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