MollyBGoodwin

Is "Velvet Elvis" Red Velvet cake? If not, that's definitely a Southern dessert to look for.

Hey Cynical - when you refer to "Big Bob's" which town in AL are you talking about? I'm in Charleston now, but grew up in teeny little Decatur, Al where we had a 'Big Bob Gibson's" that served white sauce bbq, although it was generally accepted that Greenbriar in Madison was better. Just wondered if that's who you were talking about.

Oh - and eat peach cobbler anywhere you can find it - this is a good year for Southern peaches, as we had a dry spring/early summer.

I don't know exactly about those cities' bakeries, but I can tell you this. The basic, old-fashioned Southern Living Cookbook is one of the best sources for these recipes you could ever find. I know - I tested some of them when I worked for Oxmoor House. Also - Junior League Cookbooks from just about any city in the south will be chock full of "receipts" Nashville Seasons is a good one.

...and being that good lookin' never stopped anybody from getting a tv show. Especially if you can throw in a little chick-magnet heartstring story with each episode.

Yes, it's the fear of the unknown! You never know what's behind that cloak of a tortilla!! ← OOOOO Miracle Whip!!! Foul stuff.....

Another vote for raw tomatoes. I felt rather like a mutant growing up in the South, surrounded by family members with 2-inch-thick, white bread tomato sandwiches with juice dripping down their elbows as they leaned over the sink practically moaning over how great the dern things were while I just wondered how they got them down. Cook 'em even just a little bit, though, and I'm fine. Fortunately, I married another tomato mutant so we get along just fine....

Y - we called it "butter" too - and real butter was "real butter"

Thank you, how sweet of you to say. Is your name a clever play on the old song title, Johnny B. Goode? ← Damn, I knew that was going to start happening. I got married a month and a half ago, and my maiden name was Baldwin, hence, Molly B. Goodwin. Didn't realize it till my new business cards came in.

Have you eaten or read anything by this interesting man? If so, please talk to us ... My, my .... all this talk about Highlands is well-deserved, but when I lived in Bham, the place to go, and for good reason, was Stitt's Bottega Restaurant. Same idea, Italian accent. I had one of the best dishes of my life there - it was lamb and a wide flat pasta with blackeyed peas and a light brown sauce. Flat-out delicious!! Nearly equally good was the hot spot Bottega Cafe next door. Anyone know if these places are still good? and what's the story with Chez Fon Fon? silly name, but I hear it's good too. Any other southern chefs who have done likewise? Scott Peacock comes to mind instantly ... Also, Frank Lee in Charleston (Slightly North of Broad), and Louis Osteen (Louis's at Pawley's Island) are outstanding. Hit Louis's restaruants in their first year or so, while he's still interested, and you'll be richly rewarded.

Amen, Mr. Davis!! Loved the article on Coke, and agree on many levels. To this day for me, any carbonated drink is a "coke" - ex: stopping at store or gas station: "d'you want a coke?" "Yeah, get me a Dr. Pepper (or 7-up, or Diet Coke, etc, etc. - but NEVER Pepsi!) In fact, when I was about 8 years old, a Yankee friend of the family asked me if I wanted a "pop" and I think I told him I already had a dad. I also agree on the New Coke debacle, and second all kudos to Mrs. Mayhaw for her well-deserved, colorful Camellia Grill rant.

Hey Fistfullaroux - How is Culinard doing? I used to livein BHAM and worked at Southern Living, and watched the opening with interest just after moving to Charleston. Do you hear good things?

Poor, poor EarthFare in Charleston. They've had a fairly successful shop on one side of town for years, so they opened another in an upscale shopping center on the other side of town just about year ago. About three months later Whole Foods opened about 5 miles from them, and that "near fanatical zeal for organic" that FlapJack Willy referred to is contributing to an %&^kicking that is astounding. A friend of mine worked in EF meat department and sales dropped 40% in a month and haven't come back up yet. They are in serious trouble.

p.s. Doug - in case you don't already know it, it seems the Poche's website is down.

patti, I love your signature quote!! My turducken-making project was for a large group and while all the parts were individually quite successful (good stuffings, gravy, etc) the whole did not exactly hit it big. They're pretty good storytelling, though - I figure I can wrestle a fairly entertaining story from them.

Hello Milagai - I am in Charleston, South Carolina. We're kind of hurting for Indian around here - I go through Atlanta a couple of times a year, though - that seems like it might be a good bet.

Many thanks to you all !! I forgot all about the Steingarten chapter, and the history from Jackal is very helpful. fistfullaroux - I have made one and I agree with you - buying is the way to go, especially for the "gentle reader." $100 is a bargain for something this involved.

Watch out for Charlotte. Apparently, the powers that be decided that improving the culinary part of their city was important enough to throw many millions of dollars at Johnson & Wales. Have whatever opinion you like of the school, but the simple laws of supply and demand for labor, and plenty of money and people in the city will have an effect. Pretty much everyone agrees here in Charleston that the glut of cheap labor provided by the student body of our JWU campus was a critical factor in the restaurant growth of the 80's and 90's. We'll see what happens here now that they are gone, but JWU-Charlotte will not be treated like the red-headed stepchild by the "mother ship" in Providence the way the Charleston campus was, and the impact will be significant , IMO.

I read it on Saturday morning, and it was helpful, but a little scathing. I did enjoy the part about the veggie version, though. Oh well, the place where animal welfare and culinary interests cross is never a pleasant intersection. Must have been a ball watching Prudhomme make one. The first time I saw it was back when Emeril Live was actually a good show (pardon the editorial moment) and it was great. Thanks for the reference. Kosher, huh? wow.

I know I'm "Johnny Come Lately' on this - but I think RMChef is on to something. I live in Charleston, and La Bastide is a best kept secret of sorts, but it is in the upstate and is hell and gone from anywhere. However, if you haven't been to the Woodlands, they have a new chef who is outstanding - the food went up a notch, which is significant considering how good it was before.

How great!! I'm from Sumter and my folks always called it perlow. We kept it simple- either chicken, black pepper, and onions, or okra and onions. Love it and it's the quickest way I know to get as fat as a house.

So - it's getting to be the holidays, and I'm writing a story about Turducken - the rather brutally festive Cajun specialty featuring a series of birds stuffed into one another with fillings in between. I know Prudhomme claims it, and have found references to similar recipes as far back as 1832 here in Charleston, but am wondering what I'm missing. Any older, Cajun-based origins out there? What do you guys know about it? I bet fistfullaroux has some insight. Thanks from the newbie! Molly

This is a great topic, and having grown up in the South - and with some country relatives, it's important to remember these are not generally high-class folks slapping grits and country ham onto diner plates along with the Shedd's Spread - so money has always been an issue - and most of what's great about Southern food is that it works with the cheap stuff straight out of the garden and barnyard. Which makes it particularly vulnerable to the shift to agribusiness, and it's much harder to keep 'farm food' going with fewer local farms. Country Southern food, in general, is more about family pride than high-minded culinary aesthetic, so no one really gets offended by much or wants to hang on to the "trimmings," especially if they are expensive. The biscuits are good because that's how "meemaw" made them more than because someone "learned how to make great bread." Also - I know my dad, who grew up in small-town South Carolina during WWII, still eats margarine because that's what he had during rationing as a child. I'd consider that a small contributing factor, though - but I had a heck of a time telling him it was bad - he wouldn't believe me at all till he wrote a check for culinary school, but he still eats margarine when I'm not around to be a snob.

Please pardon one quick question from a newish fan of Indian cuisine who is living in the South - you all sound quite advanced - any chance you know of a credible spot in the Southeastern US to seek out Indian cuisine? I'm trying to convert someone and need the best example I can find before he rejects the whole category.