"Yes, you can give him a message. You do take shorthand, don't you? Good, we take it in the South too. Anyway, just tell him that I have been a Southerner all my life, and I can vouch for the fact the we do eat a lot of things down here... and we've certainly all had our share of grits and biscuits and gravy, and I myself have probably eaten enough fried chicken to feed a third world country - not to mention barbecue, cornbread, watermelon, fried pies, okra, and... yes... if I were being perfectly candid, I would have to admit we have also eaten our share of crow, and for all I know - during the darkest, leanest years of the Civil War, some of us may have had a Yankee or two for breakfast. But... speaking for myself and hundreds of thousands of my Southern ancestors who have evolved through many decades of poverty, strife, and turmoil, I would like for Mr. Weaks to know that we have surely eaten many things in the past, and we will surely eat many things in the future, but - God as my witness - we have never, I repeat, never eaten dirt!"
- Ms. Julia Sugarbaker
- Ms. Julia Sugarbaker
The thing about Southern favorites is that most of the time we find them in Mom or Grandma's kitchen, so don't usually go out to enjoy them. But every so often there is nothing better to top off an evening outing of shopping than a good ol' meat and three, and in such cases we head straight to Swett's.
The cafeteria serving style makes it dangerous to come here when you're starving since your eyes will inevitably overestimate the capacity of your stomach. But there they are, all your home favorites, lined up, steamin' and just waitin' to be piled up on your plate. Fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken fried steak, BBQ or fried fish for your meat,
macaroni and cheese, turnip greens, squash casserole, candied yams, sweet potatoes, green beans, fried okra and fried apples for your three (for those not familiar with the system, "three" as in you pick three veggies to go with your meat choice). And then of course there is your bread choice - dinner roll, baked cornbread or fried cornbread.
Dessert at Swett's, of course, cannot be passed up. Even if all you manage is a single bite at the end of your dinner, take the rest home with you for a snack later. Peach cobbler, blackberry cobbler, fudge pie, pecan pie, sweet potato pie - these are the things that make my heart sing.
Thanks for the class and the sass Ms. Sugarbaker.
Swett's
2725 Clifton Ave.
Nashville, TN 37209
615-329-4418
It's so funny that we southerners consider things like macaroni and cheese a "vegetable," but it's totally true . . . always a part of the "veggie plate" at any southern restaurant (and being a vegetarian who LOVES southern food, I have eaten many veggie plates in my life . . . ). I think I've mastered my greens recipe, and my mac and cheese is now just as good as my mama's (squash casserole too!). My cornbread, however, isn't yet up to par . . . so let me know if you have any tips!
ReplyDeleteDo you like your cornbread with a bit of sugar in it or not?
ReplyDeleteBy the way, did you see that Dixie Carter passed away yesterday? Were you a Designing Women fan? So sad.
Yeah, I like a bit of sugar, I think. I've had it convincingly good both ways, but I think I do like it a little bit sweet. Biscuits, however, are a whole different story.
ReplyDeleteYes, I read about the death of the lovely designing woman . . . RIP.