Middle America Road Trip Cuisine - Need Advice for Fargo and Madison

[imaginejem]

My husband and I are driving from Nashville, Tennessee to St. Louis, Kansas City, Denver, up through Wyoming to Bozeman, Glacier National Park, Calgary, Moose Jaw/Regina in Saskatchewan, Fargo, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Madison, then back home to Nashville! Whew! So, we really want our food experience to be awesome and authentic, and would love and appreciate suggestions for places to eat along the way! We won't necessarily be sticking to interstates and highways, either. Thanks in advance for any help!

[The Dairy Queen]

For the part of the trip where you pass through Minneapolis/St. Paul:

There are a million zillion posts on the Twin Cities (usually labeled MSP) on this board. You might have a peek around or give us more of an idea of what kinds of authentic foods you're interested in so we can do a better job of directing you to chow you might be interested in. Lots of great Southeast Asian, African, and other kinds of foods here. Here's a recent thread, for instance, with recommendations for someone visiting from out of town on a business trip http://www.chowhound.com/topics/521190 Here's another thread with recommendations for someone who will be visiting for about a month http://www.chowhound.com/topics/520157

For your Fargo/MSP leg (depending on your route):

Fisher's Supper Club in Avon, MN (This restaurant sits alongside the Lake Woebegone Bicycle Trail, which runs from St. Joseph to beyond Alexandria. (St. Joseph is one exit West of St. Cloud on I94; Avon two exits west of St. Joseph.) ).
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/435270

(I don't necessarily recommend it for the Chow, but Charlie's in Sauk Centre is one of the places Garrison Keillor used as a model for his Lake Woebegone stories, if you're a PHC fan. Also, Sauk Centre might appeal to you if you're want to see what Sinclair Lewis was thinking about when he wrote Main Street).

Clear Lake & Becker, MN (off Hwy 10, btw St. Cloud & Twin Cities) McDonald's Meats & Coffee Cup Cafe
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/432545

Here's a thread on Breakfast in St. Cloud
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/451964

Val's Rapid Serve in St. Cloud
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/470629

Anything to eat in St. Cloud?
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/473359

Good luck, have fun, and please report back!

~TDQ

[imaginejem]

Thanks so much for the advice! I'll try to figure out what route we're taking to be more specific in my requests!