Southern Foodways Symposium, Day Four

Started off Saturday with a lunch that included pork cheeks from Five and Ten's Hugh Acheson:

Had a pork sandwich from B's BBQ at the Shell station. Oxford serves some fantastic food at their gas stations:

After another stop at City Grocery, we headed to the Saturday night extravaganza, featuring Boudin Balls:

A tree in the 'Bacon Forest:'

Ryan from Herbsaint:

Stephen from Cochon:

Ed Mitchell's pork and cracklins:

Frank Stitt of Highlands Bar and Grill serves pig ears:

The Rising Star Drum & Fife Band in the Bacon Forest:

Southern Foodways Symposium, Day Three

Ate a fantastic lunch consisting of:

Boudin with Saltines / T-Boy Berzas, Ville Platte, Louisiana

Hot Guts / Bryan Bracewell, Southside Market, Elgin, Texas

Various Sides / Steven Barber, Napa, California

Succotash of Rancho Gordo Butter Beans w/Benton's Country Ham

Potato Salad with Garnett Yams, Benton's Bacon, and Katz Apple Cider Vinegar:For mid-day snacks, it was back to L & M's for yet more chicken liver.

We then took the double-decker to Taylor Grocery for the best catfish on the planet, accompanied by one of the best bands on the planet, Blue Mountain:


Capped it all off with an Oxford institution, 'Chicken On A Stick,' from the Chevron:

Southern Foodways Symposium, Day Two

Started out the day with a breakfast feast from the folks from Herbsaint & Cochon and Bruce Aidells. We had pork cracklins, ponce, tortilla, bacon, and a few more pig parts that I can't recall.

After a quick drive to Oxford, we stopped at L & M's for some charcuterie and chicken liver:

For the main event, Eddie Hernandez and Mike Klank from the peerless Taqueria del Sol treated us to a fine mexican feast, including Fried Chicken Tacos, 'Hoppin Juan,' and beer from Atlanta Brewing Co.:

It was back to L & M's for more meats, then over to City Grocery for beers:

Southern Foodways Symposium, Day One

We're in Mississippi for the 10th annual Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium. The trip through Alabama took us to Pop's Charburgers:

Then it was off to a barbecue shack with great pork sandwiches and a sign that should guarantee their success:

We arrived in Greenwood at the Viking Range headquarters, and broke down a pig with pork man Bruce Aidells:

Happy pig:

Jeff gets beard advice from Bruce:

Dinner featured more pig, courtesy of Donald Link and Stephen Stryjewski of Cochon. Link choppin' pig:

Another pig:

Alabama Eatin'

Ate some good food in Alabama this weekend - Highlands Bar and Grill had some fantastic Apalachicola oysters:

Also stopped by Pete's Famous Hot Dogs in Birmingham for a dog all the way - check out the beautiful sign:

Then it was off to Pop's Charburgers in Heflin, AL, home of delicious burgers, butterscotch shakes and "a cup of ice pellets for crunchin'" (it's on the menu) - only to be met with this devastating news:

Had to settle for a pork sandwich at Golden Rule in Pell City, which wasn't too shabby.

Benton's Bacon Dinner, Pt. II

We hosted Allan Benton for another dinner featuring his products last night, this one at Repast. We'll post the menu once we recover from the bacon hangover, but needless to say, the meal was fantastic. Allan seemed to enjoy his culinary tour of Atlanta, and was particularly impressed with the meat counter at Star Provisions and the fish tacos at Taqueria del Sol.

Repast Chef Joe Truex and Allan Benton:

Benton's Bacon Dinner at Food 101

We were proud to bring one of the great ham artisans of the modern era, Allan Benton, to Atlanta for a dinner featuring his products at Food 101. The seven-course menu consisted of:

Smoked Ham and Corn Risotto

Green Eggs & Ham
Twice Cooked Farm Egg, Shaved Country Ham & Cypress Grove Cheese

Stuffed Yukon Gold Potato
Crisp Bacon, Balsamic Roasted Mushrooms, Cowgirl Creamery Fromage Blanc & Trout Caviar

“The Other” Pork Ravioli
Allan’s Prosciutto, Braised Cabbage, Sweet Grass Dairy Goat Cheese & Gravenstein Apple Butter

Local Arugula
Grilled Pears, Oregonzola Cheese, Bacon Croutons & Buttermilk Bacon Dressing

Springer Mountain Chicken & Country Ham Wellington
Grain Mustard Potato Puree, Local Swiss Chard & Tomato-Pork Jus

Strawberry & Fennel Turnover

10x Sugar & Arugula Ice Cream

Green Eggs & Ham:

Kempten in the AJC!

Green Olive's Branding Director, Kempten Roberts, was featured in the AJC's Apartment Guide last week.


 

Green Olive Media Has Won the Lottery!!!

...The Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium lottery, that is! We're counting down the days until we can join all of our favorite Southerners and would-be Southerners (as Matt and Ted would say) down in Oxford, Mississippi, for great food, cold beers and lots of fantastic stories! See you there!