Did you know that Gonzales, Louisiana is the Jambalaya Capital of the World? That’s what they decided to start calling themselves in 1967, the idea being that, along with a brand new Jambalaya Festival, the self-proclaimed title would help make a name for the town. And, you know what? It worked! Continue reading
Month: May 2015 (Page 2 of 4)
Waffle House, Weldon NC
REVIEW
The Waffle House has beckoned to us for years, decades even. We have a general aversion to chains, but a curiosity when it comes to regional chains. We’ve enjoyed Steak-N-Shake, Burgerville, Rubio’s fish tacos… not that we’d make a point of returning to most of them, but they were certainly worth the visit. The reason we’d never entered a Waffle House wasn’t that we actively avoided it but that there was always a better, independent option available, especially given their Southern locations. Continue reading
HAPPY NATIONAL CHERRY COBBLER DAY!
Interview with Van Sykes, Owner of Bob Sykes BBQ of Alabama
Bob and Maxine Sykes opened Bob Sykes Bar B Q in 1957. Today, their son Van runs the restaurant with Van’s nephew, Jason, using the exact same recipes and methods that were used in 1957. The Birmingham News talked to Mr. Sykes about the restaurant, his parents, and the blues and BBQ festival he holds in town each year. Some things we learn: you want to order the most popular meal at Sykes? Get a BBQ pork sandwich with homemade O-rings and red velvet cake for dessert. And: when he was 12, he burned a pit full of pork, and his father made him pay for the burned meat!
Where rhubarb goes, strawberry follows. Or so it seems. The crisp and tart vegetable/fruit that looks like pink celery is in season in springtime, just like its playmate the strawberry. Of course you do see rhubarb things without the berry but, to us, that always seems a little sad, as if someone is warning us not to have too much fun. That won’t be a problem tomorrow, Sunday, May 17th, in Kankakee, Illinois, as the 25th annual Rhubarb Festival will be held at the Kankakee County Museum at the Small Memorial Museum Campus. Continue reading
Checking In at: Demolition Coffee, Petersburg VA
Demolition Coffee opened in the Old Towne section of Petersburg, Virginia in 2010. As the Historic District name suggests, this is the oldest part of Petersburg, with many buildings remaining from the 18th and 19th centuries. Today’s Old Towne features boutiques and restaurants and is populated with young adults residing in warehouses-turned-lofts. The building Demolition sits in was built in 1879 for Southern Railway Express. The owner/developer has left much of the old brick exposed, lending the coffee house that classic urban adaptive reuse vibe. Continue reading
HAPPY NATIONAL COQUILLES ST. JACQUES DAY!
Interstate BBQ Expanding to East Memphis
Jim Neely and his nephew Tony will be opening the fourth Interstate Barbecue next month at 7209 Winchester Road in Memphis, at the eastern edge of the city. The original restaurant is on South 3rd Street in Memphis, with branches in the Memphis airport and Southaven, Mississippi, just over the state line from Memphis. Interstate is one of the great barbecue meccas in a city known for great barbecue.
Mike the Headless Chicken Festival, Fruita CO, May 15th and 16th 2015
Let’s set the scene: imagine it’s 1948, and you live on a farm where you raise chickens. Your mother-in-law will be here for dinner tonight, and she is fond of eating the chicken neck. So you go out to your coop and grab a fat bird, and when you swing your axe you’re sure to leave lots of neck for your mom. Off comes the head, followed by tonight’s dinner behaving as if nothing significant has just occurred. That’s what actually happened to the Olsen family of Fruita, Colorado. Lloyd Olsen was moved by the chicken’s determination, named him Mike, and continued to raise and feed him (he grew from 2 1/2 pounds to 8 pounds) for the next 18 months! Continue reading
Checking In at: Port City Brewing Co., Alexandria VA
Port City in Alexandria, Virginia served as our rest stop on a drive from Petersburg, VA to Glen Burnie, MD. It’s a brewery, not a brewpub, located along a commercial stretch of light industry. As we parked and strolled in we expected a typical, sleepy little tasting room. We were confronted by a packed, loud party of twenty-somethings. For a moment we thought we must have entered a private party (one where we could blend in and score some free beer!). In actuality, this was just a popular spot for imbibing. Port City was recently voted Best Local Brewery in a Washington City Paper poll. Continue reading
HAPPY NATIONAL CHOCOLATE CHIP DAY!
Polly’s Pancake Parlor Opens May 16th, Totally Rebuilt
Polly’s granddaughter, Kathy Cote, along with her husband Dennis, has operated Polly’s Pancake Parlor of Sugar Hill, New Hampshire in the same 65-seat carriage shed that Polly used to serve her customers on day one in 1938. Last year they decided it was time to make the change: that shed would be torn down and a new, larger facility would be built in its place. Longtime customers were apprehensive about the change, but the Cotes let out a big sigh of relief when they heard from loyal fans, “It’s just like the old one only bigger.” They open Saturday, May 16th. Read more about Polly’s on the New Hampshire Public Radio website.
The name of this festival is really for historical significance and atmospherics as you are not likely to find actual poke salat (or sallet) at this or any of the other poke sallet festivals held in Southern communities. What is poke salat? You may know it as pokeweed. It has been treated as a vegetable in the rural South, much more so in the past than today. Only the young leaves are eaten, and they must be boiled well – some say in several changes of water. The plant is considered poisonous, particularly the root, stems, and berries. Continue reading
Pete’s Hot Dog King, Bethlehem PA
REVIEW
Chili dogs and deep-fried pierogi: that’s your lunch. Where are you? If you answered Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, count yourself among the LAF cognoscenti. What French fries are to most of the fast-food eating populace, fried pierogi are to the Lehigh Valley. And what Yocco’s is to Allentown, Pete’s is to Bethlehem. Continue reading
HAPPY NATIONAL BUTTERMILK BISCUIT DAY!
Coffee Passion
We have our share of food pet peeves. One of them is flavored coffee. We despise the smell. We reject the taste. We like the taste of coffee, so we want our coffee to taste like coffee. Seth Appell, the man behind Old Bisbee Roasters of Bisbee, Arizona, is our kind of coffee man. He trades in small farm, single origin coffees, roasting each batch to bring out the unique flavors hidden in the green beans. He doesn’t do hazelnut or pumpkin pie coffee. In fact, most of his coffees aren’t even blends. Read more about this unique individual, and his special relationship with the bean, in this Sierra Vista Herald story.
It’s biscuits, biscuits, and more biscuits as the International Biscuit Festival returns to Knoxville, Tennessee this week. This relatively new festival, first held in 2009, has rapidly grown into one of the country’s major food shindigs. There are really two parts to this event. Beginning Thursday, May 14th, and continuing through the day Friday, is the Southern Food Writing Conference, featuring seminars, speakers, and professional food writers. The $450 registration fee will keep those with a more casual interest in the subject away. Of more relevance to the general public will be the events from Friday evening on. Continue reading
Pig Feathers, Toledo OR
REVIEW
No regional qualification necessary: Pig Feathers makes damn good barbecue. We admit to being surprised by this fact. Coastal Oregon is not considered a hotbed of great Q, and we’ve come to expect smoke parlors with goofy names like Pig Feathers, and goofy mottos like their trademarked “Everyone loves a great rack!”, to churn out the kind of ordinary barbecue found in shopping malls across the country. Beware of hasty judgments. Continue reading
HAPPY NATIONAL APPLE PIE DAY!
Primanti Bros. is opening a new restaurant in York, Pennsylvania this Friday, May 15th. The first 100 to show up will get a free sandwich each week for a year (plus a t-shirt). What’s it worth to you? We’d suggest heading out to 2151 South Queen Street today if you want to have any chance at all!
