I’ve found the locals hang out, HH & $ drafts, almost cloud nine!  Looks like all the rafting/canoeing river guides are here after a trip down the Rio Grande. The Rio Grande is the border between Mexico and Big Bend National Park, Tx. It has eight or nine sets of rapids that can be category IV, but are usually calmer, and some groups even camp for several nights. The guided tours go with the flow of the river, that makes it much easier paddling, especially in the rapids, than the way I do it.
    I put my kayak in the river at St. Elena Canyons eastern end near where I camp and paddle up river into that wonder of nature. I wouldn’t miss it and do it each March or April as part of my winter adventures. The guides put the rafts, canoes or kayaks in at Lajitas on Rt.170 that goes on to Presidio through the rugged Sonora Desert and Big Bend Ranch Texas State Park. I can hear the talk of paddling, rowing, currents, rocks and crazy tourists. The place doesn’t open til 5pm. I was here at 4:30, no cars, when I came back a half hour or so later the bar was full. Several tourists were sitting at tables that separated them from the locals at the bar. I had to reluctantly sit at a table, too, a bar stool was my choice, but the view was better from a table for a spectator and people watcher that I am. Also, since I’m not a local here so, it’s a good place to learn the way to conduct one self and the customs. I’ll have more room to eat here, too.  A photo of the place would be nice, it’s too dimly lit though with a thatched roof supported by wooded beams and stone walls that absorb the light. My Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 point and shoot camera’s 1250 top ISO setting won’t do the job and I don’t dare use a flash. I might disturb the locals and alter their performance. That may be bad etiquette for a foreigner, first timer, and not a good idea if I want to stay incognito and get fed. May be after my food is served I may take chance. I wonder if the place is as time weathered as it looks or just built recently to look real west Texas? I don’t remember it being here last year, but it’s out of view from the road, so I could’ve missed it and the sign is rather obscure. There’s a guy at the bar who looks like he just walked out of a John Wayne movie. Is he for real? I’d say probably not, just a yuppie in costume. The others look a little more country than the HH O.C. crowd. I think they’re authentic and lots of river talk to indicate it.
    The food I ordered is the combo Barbeque on the menu. Would it be the Texas BBQ I’ve been searching for? I asked for them to hold the chicken and give me more of the brisket and pork ribs to replace it. Here it comes; what a pile of meat and great aroma with soft tortillas, beans and cole slaw, too.  The interior of the huge portion of brisket is moist, lush and delicious. It’s juicy and there’s a hint of the rub’s flavor. The slices are about 3⁄4” thick. I like the way the fat is interspersed in the slices; that’s where the great taste is. No knife is needed. It’s slow cooked in a pit. I just heard someone say part of this place is a cave and “John Wayne” hasn’t mixed with the locals. Authentic? Whoops the locals are talking to him, but his clothes are too clean to be here from work. There are some spots at the bar, so Happy Hour must be over. I’m not moving, not with all this food. I’m about to tear into the ribs. Like the brisket the crust or the bark is dry, but the interior is moist, delectable and the sauce should be bottled. Is this the genuine Texas BBQ I’ve been waiting and searching for during my trips to Texas over the last seven years? Yes, and it’s scrumptious. La Kiva is the name of this new find for me and is instantly on my Don’t Miss List. Ah, more of my questions are being answered by the conversation of three golden aged people sitting nearby. The restaurant is built partially in a cave. That explains the rock walls. One said it was here when she rafted the river in 1981, so it’s been here for a while. The meal was absolutely delicious; I will be back.
    I’m sure you have a reason why you return to a restaurant again and again. My most important reasons are the food is tasty and the portion size is large enough to make tomorrow’s lunch. That’s a lot like Coin’s Seafood Alfredo! Those conditions were certainly met, the $ drafts helped, too, and I lunched on brisket wrapped in the tortilla as I sat on a rock landing in the canyon the next day. There’s a fossil that fills one wall that gives the place an earthy ambience, atmosphere and personality.  As I was paying my check I learned you can camp in the back parking lot. The fee is $5/night and my food check for more than two pounds of luscious BBQ was less than twenty dollars. Oh boy, Maybe next visit I’ll take up residence in La Kiva’s Backyard and feast for several days! Who knows, maybe I’ll get a bar stool and become a quasi local. The La Kiva web site is http://www.lakiva.net <http://www.lakiva.net/> . The menu is there complete with pictures of the scrumptious food, the subterranean dining room believed to be used for spiritual ceremonies by the ancient Pueblo peoples of the southwest, and a description of the Kiva big cat mascot fossil Penisaurus Erectus.  Info with photos about floating down the Rio Grande is at http://www.texasoutside.com/exploringtexas/exploringwesttexasrafting.html.