"RoadTrip" news and stories

Fret not, Southern beer drinkers: While the region's craft beer scene has gone and grown up, its fans (if a newly released documentary is any indication) show no signs of maturing.

"Beer Y'all," billed as "rock-and-roll road trip across North Carolina," follows a scruffy septet of wannabe homebrewers on a nine-day pilgrimage to 27 microbreweries across the state. Like any great epic, the film has a hero (the guy in Allegheny County who lets the travelers crash on his couch); obstacles (drunken ping-pong); encounters with inscrutable seers (brewmasters who mumble about keg conditioning) and a moral that inspired the industry crowd at last night's world premiere screening to hoist their pitchers in appreciation: Beer shouldn't be taken too seriously.

While the dudes filmmakers marvel politely at the tanks their hosts show off, they have little patience for academic discussions of wort and hops. They'd rather get drunk and watch "Lethal Weapon 2." They like to nap. It takes 48 minutes before anyone in the film mentions how the ales taste, which leaves plenty of time for backyard volleyball playin', lazy guitar pickin' and mongrel dog scratchin'. That's Southern beer, y'all.

"Beer Y'all" will be screening in parts of the Tarheel State this summer.

The New York Times tried, rather sadly, to take a sort of road trip with their food section this week. The Sterns, the founders of Roadfood, know what road trips are and they involve more than two hours of driving. Over the last 25 years, they have driven more than 4,000,000 miles of road around the country and eaten more than 72,427. That is some serious road tripping. For a sneak peek into some of their finds, check out this column they did for Conde Naste Traveler that highlights 20 great food finds around the country. It may take more than a day to get to some of these places, but you'll have at least as much fun on the journey as you will at the destination. Hot spots and good eats include:

• Mr. Beef in Chicago, Il
• Cuban sandwich at El Siboney's in Key West, Fl.
• Creamy Grits at the Old Post Office in South Carolina
• Fried Clams at the Clam Box in Mass.
• Chili at the Little Diner in Canutillo, Texas
• Fried Chicken at Bon-Ton Mini Mart in Kentucky

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Road trips are the best way to go outside of your comfort zone and dig up some new eats. It's hard to be choosy when there is only one dining option for 50 miles, but how do you know which one of the last 50 diners is the best one for lunch? And is fast food really your only dinner option? Because the Michelin guide is too conservative to take on the whole United States, New York Times writer Christine Muhlke decided to do it herself. With her boyfriend and a 1978 Porsche 911 Targa, they hit the road to eat burgers and fries and to see what local chefs are doing across the country.

Aiming for good food at the rather extreme price points, Muhlke compiled lists of low priced and expensive eats from magazines, chefs, friends and the Zagat guide before hitting the road. On the low side, highlights included a stop at the Cheeseboard Collective in Berkeley, CA and Shotgun Bubba’s BBQ in California, MO. Pricey favorites also popped up at every stop, from Metropolitan in Salt Lake City, UT to 40 Sardines in Kansas City, KS.

The short list won't make it into book form any time soon, but it's still a nice resource if you're traveling.

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