To drive for

Hesitant to get on the 101 after 5 p.m. even though your wife has just gone into labor? Do you coast in neutral down the 405 to save gas? Well, here are some foodies who will actually drive an hour or more to satisfy their cravings.

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Smokin Jacks Kansas City BBQ

Sometimes I get the jones for real Kansas City-style barbecue and I’ll drive up to Smokin Jacks in Carpinteria to gorge on a plate of spareribs, along with a monstrous 28-ounce pork chop doused in spicy apricot sauce. While I’m waiting, I have a deep-fried pickle. I suck on mints all the way home, hoping my family, many of whom are vegetarian, won’t be able to smell the meat on my breath. My wife says I need help. “Don’t you dare go near the children smelling like that,” she screams. 3807 Santa Claus Lane, Carpinteria.

David Lansing is a freelance writer who reports on food, wine and spirits

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Donut Man

I buy a dozen Krispy Kremes a week, preferably when they’re still so hot that the glaze burns my fingers. It’s almost sinister the way they make people forget other kinds of doughnuts. Donut Man, on a lonely stretch of Route 66, still makes old-fashioned cake doughnuts and crullers. In spring and summer, owner Jim Nakano slices open large doughnuts and stuffs them with fresh strawberries or peaches, using primo locally grown fruit. It’s worth schlepping all the way from Sylmar to Glendora. 915 E. Route 66, Glendora.

Charles Perry reports on food for The Times

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Karen Krasne Extraordinary Desserts

The official reason I give for driving from Palm Springs to visit Extraordinary Desserts in San Diego is that I need to stock up on some really great teas, such as owner Karen Krasne’s blends or my more esoteric favorites from the Mariage Freres tea company. But the real reason is Krasne’s extraordinary desserts. Whether it’s her Caribe--chocolate mousse infused with mango, banana and passion-fruit juices sandwiched between layers of dark chocolate cake--or her Blood Orange Ricotta Torte--with blood orange whipped cream, fresh raspberries and cranberries--or one of her cheesecakes, ice creams or sorbets, one bite would hook any patisserie lover. The desserts are beautiful too, but it’s the spirit that counts, and the spirit is sublime. 2929 Fifth Ave. and 1430 Union St., San Diego.

Henry Fenwick is a freelance writer who frequently reports on food

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Lotus of Siam

It’s a struggle to get off the Strip in Las Vegas, but sooner or later I find my car heading for a scruffy mall and the Thai restaurant Lotus of Siam. There’s nothing as good--or as lip-numbingly hot--in L.A. They’ll ask you how hot you want it, on a scale of one to 10: Anything above eight, and your head will be smoking. This modest place is a hangout for Las Vegas chefs, and sommelier fans have helped the owner put together a sweet little wine list. Who knew you could find such authentic and soulful Thai cooking next to a showgirls’ wig store? 953 E. Sahara Ave., Las Vegas.

S. Irene Virbila is the Los Angeles Times food critic

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Chino Farm

I’ll get in the car at 6 a.m., drive south to Rancho Santa Fe, pick out strawberries at Chino Farm and be back at Spago before noon. The Chino family’s wild strawberries are worth the drive; they’re grown with such love and are the sweetest, most flavorful berries you’ll ever have. They have sweet notes and spice notes and have hints of vanilla at times. Everything there is just amazing. 6123 Calzada del Bosque, Rancho Santa Fe.

Sherry Yard is executive pastry chef at Spago

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Alpine Village

Alpine Village carries the best Lubecker marzipan in the world. It comes in different-size loaves, and I don’t know exactly what makes this particular marzipan so good, but it’s really tasty--nutty, not too sweet, a hint of rose water. It has a very distinct taste and is really a high-quality confection. At Christmastime they carry lebkuchen, a classic German gingerbread that, unlike American varieties, is fairly coarse; you should be able to see the candied lemon and orange peel and lots of nuts. The kind at Alpine Village is moist, which makes it the perfect

Christmas cookie. They have three assortments of lebkuchen: a natural version, a chocolate-covered one and one that’s glazed with fondant. 833 Torrance Blvd., Torrance.

Hans Rockenwagner is a chef and owner of Rockenwagner restaurant

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La Super-Rica Taqueria

As soon as I hit Oxnard, I start thinking about what I’m going to order. By the time I’ve made Montecito, I’m salivating. When I get to the Milpas exit, my car is practically driving itself. La Super-Rica is unassuming--essentially a tarp-covered patio connected to a small kitchen. This isn’t the standard Southern California taco-stand menu. Instead, it seems as if you’re eating in the kitchen of someone’s tia. No carnitas, but a vegetable tamale, tacos filled with grilled poblano peppers (rajas) and queso fundido, especially the one with cubes of bacon in it. All come with fresh corn tortillas that are patted, pressed and grilled right in front of you. 622 Milpas St., Santa Barbara.

Russ Parsons is a Los Angeles Times food columnist

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Pizzeria Bianco and Pane Bianco

My husband and I go to Phoenix for Chris Bianco’s food. We’ll definitely drive five hours just to eat lunch at his sandwich shop and spend the afternoon at his wine bar [Bar Bianco], which is set in a Craftsman-style bungalow next door to his pizzeria, where we’ll have dinner. We got married in Phoenix just so we could eat Chris’ food. At the pizzeria, the seasonal antipastos are mostly made in his wood-burning oven. They include small plates of roasted baby carrots, charred escarole salad and smoked ricotta. His pizza’s thin crust is so basic--just flour, water, yeast and sea salt--and has the right amount of toppings, which are all pristine: asiago cheese, pistachios and locally grown vegetables. Pizzeria Bianco, 623 E. Adams St.; Pane Bianco, 4404 N. Central Ave., Phoenix.

Suzanne Goin is a chef and owner of Lucques and AOC restaurants