Savor the South
Thursday, Mar 19Comfort food makes the South even more hospitable for meetings. So taking a plated tour is an extra-like adding gravy to biscuits, sugar to iced tea, and vinegar to greens.
By Patricia Bates
Interest in Southern dining is on the rise. The Southern Foodways Alliance has held gatherings from Chicago to Washington, D.C., and the International Culinary Tourism Association assembled its first Southeast Regional Culinary Symposium last April in Baton Rouge, La.
There’s more table talk about chefs from Nashville to Miami, Birmingham to Savannah, and Jackson to New Orleans than ever before. Groups just may want to discuss that over their next meal on the road.
Alabama
From ribs to roast, Alabamans go whole hog for barbecue-especially around Birmingham. The Southern Foodways Alliance has even smoked out a few of these places along their Southern Barbecue Trail for a driving tour.
After leasing a bus and hiring a step-on guide, follow this meaty map to such restaurants as Demetri’s BBQ, which has been in operation since 1962 in nearby Homewood. It’s all about the sauce at Demetri’s, where everyone can double up on the beef and turkey along with the Greek salad.
Bob Sykes Bar-B-Q knows that flavor is in the hickory wood, so it has piled it on since 1957 in Bessemer. Plates can be accompanied by a variety of sides, from corn-on-the-cob to red velvet cake. At the Golden Rule Bar-B-Q in Irondale, smoked sausage and brisket can be ordered along with cheddar muffins, collard greens, and cinnamon apples.
Barbecue came to the South with the Native American tribes and African-American slaves, but mustard and white sauces are now preferred in much of north and east Alabama. For a “taste-off,” these caterers could also bring the meal to your event at Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark where fires were lit for years to make iron.
Louisiana
Happy hour is almost any time in New Orleans, but especially at the bars frequented on the Original Cocktail Walking Tour by Gray Line along Bourbon Street. Mixology began in 1838 in the Big Easy when Antoine Peychaud made a Sazerac.
Today, the brandy-and-bitters drink is as popular as ever in the French Quarter. The spirits of New Orleans can also be found in beverages like the Hurricane, the Ramos Gin Fizz, and the Pimm’s Cup. These recipes are explained at many lounges during the two-and-half-hour stroll.
As the oldest restaurant in New Orleans, Antoine’s is a must-see for participants where the flaming spiced Café Brulot has been a nightcap for years. They will also get a glimpse into its wine cellar along with other areas.
Louisiana’s libations can also be imbibed during the New Orleans Culinary History Tours. Besides Antoine’s, there are tastings at the second oldest eatery, Tujague’s, along with mini-muffulettas to seafood gumbo to pralines elsewhere. By then, even a novice will know the difference between Cajun and Creole food.
To schedule a tour, contact Gray Line or New Orleans Culinary History Tours.
Mississippi
You’ll never feel more at home on the range than at the Viking Cooking School in Greenwood, not far from where the stoves are manufactured at its headquarters. It offers lessons for up to 12 people at a time in its kitchens to make such delicacies as catfish and crispy fried chicken.
A blues musician will even play for amateur chefs while they are making their salads and sides. Viking can organize themed workshops around recipes from the Caribbean to Asia, and also offers demonstrations with samples and beverages at venues around Jackson.
Greenwood has also wrapped itself up in hot tamales, as Viking underwrites the Mississippi Delta Tamale Trail at through the Southern Foodways Alliance. In the husk, the meat-filled cornmeal has been a staple there since migrant cotton field workers from Mexico brought them in the early 1900s in their lunch pails.
Groups could have a dine-around evening in Greenwood at the Crystal Grill (also known for its meringue-topped pies); Giardina’s (where tamales come in elegant parchment paper), Flatland Grill (where they include cheddar cheese and chili), or Steven’s Bar-B-Q (with its special tamale pies).
Tennessee
Like any good rivals, George Dickel and Jack Daniel could never agree on their spelling-or their taste-in whisky. That’s why visiting their distilleries just miles from each other in middle Tennessee lets you be the judge.
George Dickel Distillery explains its process of making the liquor from sour mash in Tullahoma, where it has a Visitors Center with antiques and memorabilia. As a purist, George thought his whisky was as smooth in 1870 as that in Europe, so he labeled it without the “e” just as the Scotch did. He also believed it mellowed more in winter, so even today it is chilled before it is filtered of acids and oils.
Jack Daniel was aging his “sippin’ whiskey” by 1866 through charcoal-lined oak barrels in Lynchburg, making his the oldest such operation in Tennessee. Gentleman Jack is never referred to as bourbon, which participants will discover on the tour. They can quench their thirst afterward at the visitor center with non-alcoholic Lynchburg Lemonade.
Private picnics may be held at Barbecue Hill for 50 or more individuals at the Jack Daniel Distillery. Besides the Tipsy Apples, guests can have pulled pork, cornbread, and baked beans along with Jack Daniel’s spiked chocolate pecan pie. Or, they can lunch on country ham and biscuits or meat loaf at Miss Mary Bobo’s Boarding House, whose proprietress is Jack’s grandniece Lynne Tolley.
Florida
There’s so much more to Florida than the orange. Who knew there were 150 varieties of mangoes alone growing on 37 bountiful acres at the Fruit and Spice Park in Miami?
The citrus doesn’t fall far from the tree at the only produce paradise like this in the U.S. During year-round tours, visitors can sample what lands on the ground. They can also attend workshops from “Edible Oddities” to “Cooking with Tropical Fruits and Vegetables,” or look for juices, dried fruit, and preserves at its retail store.
The Fruit and Spice Park also features many varieties of nuts, as well as 80 kinds of bananas and 40 types of grapes from Australia to Africa. Those who like to sow seeds can arrange through the management to take some home on this safari.
Georgia
As Paula Deen says, “Put Some South in Your Mouth” on her tour of Savannah. What’s
cooking for her always has more butter in it in the Low Country.
The motor coaches take visitors to her old Southside neighborhood, where Paula’s “Bags to Riches” story began when she invested $200 in her sack lunch delivery service. They also visit Bethesda where Paula wed her husband, along with retailers like Byrd Cookie Company, One Fish Two Fish, Polk’s Produce, or Back in the Day Bakery elsewhere in Savannah.
You’ll never go hungry on the Paula Deen Tour, since dinner will be served at The Lady & Sons or Uncle Bubba’s Oyster House. And, “Hey Y’all,” she also has a goodie bag for each newfound friend on the Old Savannah Tours.
There’s some eatin’ too on the Foody Tour in Savannah, which dishes out everything from honey-pecan fried chicken to shrimp and grits at about seven locations.
Passengers will watch footage on TV about the stops before they arrive at the destinations. Most of the enterprises have been on The Food Network or The Travel Channel before, including Paula Deen’s own The Lady & Sons. To book, go to www.savannahtours.us
For More Information
Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau
Jackson Convention & Visitors Bureau
Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau
Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau
New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau
Savannah Area Convention & Visitors Bureau
