Favorite Foods of Alabama... (Mobile, Black: work, resort, art)

[Capt. Dan]

most people from Bama love to chew on Tennessee Vols!

[new2sa]

Originally Posted by Keeper

I remember Ozzies BBQ. In HS we use to go from Johnny's drive-in to Ozzie's then back to Johnny's and then to the Krystal as a last resort, cruisin to see who we knew..
Not sure what happened to Ozzie's, I know I went lookin for it and was told they closed, it could be like what happened to Fletcher's BBQ in Mobile. I was related to them through my XH, the original owners got too old to keep working and the kids didn't want to work that hard. One good thing, I have their recipe for their sauce.

LoL... yes, that was the cruise strip... only I don't remember Johnny's, where was it? There was Shoney's right next to Ozzie's... so, we could make circles through both... then on 90 towards the Krystal... seems like there was another place on the right about halfway between where Ozzie's and the Krystal were, too.

Ahhh... the good 'ole days! Still want an Ozzie's BBQ sandwich, tho!

[TexasReb]

Originally Posted by HipLib

Some of the more traditional foods you will find in north Alabama are what's known as soul food by blacks and country cookin' by most whites. These foods include things like collard greens, turnip greens, black eyed and purple hull peas, butterbeans, fried okra, cornbread, fried chicken and other meats such as pork chops (fried). Fried green tomatos are also common. You can usually find this kind of stuff in mom and pop restaurants sometimes known as meat & 3's. For one price you get one meat and three vegetables. Sweet tea is the beverage of choice.

Speaking as a native Texan with some decent sized Alabama roots (as in, next to Mississippi, it is where most of my ancestors came from after the War), I have really enjoyed reading this thread. The "menu" described above is what I grew up eating, was the staple at family reunions, and I still crave and cook today. As do most Texans (the true type, not yankee transplants! LOL).

I got a kick out of that mention of "soul food" and "country cookin'". Back in the 60's, was when that expression "soul food" first gained some popularity in the American vernacular. With most of the media and TV concerns being in the NE and California, it was associated with blacks in popular (i.e. non-Southern) mindset. The thing was, it confused many of us Southern whites because WE had eaten this great crusine described as "soul" all our lives! LOL

Great story I once read which typlified this confusion. There was some huge plant up in Michigan (maybe they made cars) which employed so many folks they had a company cafeteria. There were all races/ethnic groups represented, including many blacks and whites originally from the South (particularly from Alabama, Tennessee and Texas). Anyway, because of this natural diversity, there were special "food days" set aside for the respective cultures. For instance, there would be a "Greek Day" or "Italian Day" featuring the specialized foods.

Ok. Well, a group of Southern whites went to the cafeteria managment and asked about having a "Southern Day", which would have all the foods listed and mentioned. It was agreed to do so and the day was posted on the company bulletin board as, it turned out, happening to fall on the MLK holiday! This was just pure happenstance, but what was read was that Southern folks from Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, etc wanted to have a menu that, on MLK Day, would include such things as fried chicken and watermelon!

Oh man! Many northerners got "offended" and thought this was an intended insult...since none of them had any experience with the South. Their whole whole biased way of thinking was that what they regarded as "soul food" was to be exclusively associated with a so-called "negative stereotype" of blacks, with the same mindset being that the Southern whites were making fun.

As it turned out, not surprisingly at all, it was a group of Southern blacks who smoothed things over. They explained that "hey, down where we come from, ALL of us homefolk, black AND white eat this food. There is nothing racist about it."

Anyway, pretty good story, don't y'all agree?

[Keeper]

Johnny's was on Gov't street at the Loop.

[BOB GWIN]

Originally Posted by PeggyM

You can't go wrong with this recipe. But, you have to like Alabama food to like this. Serve it with black eyed peas, rice or fried potatoes, and corn bread - a slice of raw sweet onion won't hurt the dish at all. Good eatin'.

Black Eyed peas, Okra, COrn Break, fresh tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, baked Sweet Potatoes, Lima Beans, Beets, Carrots, etc, Anything from the Veggie Garden always went down good, when I lived in ALABAMA,
1940 from Birth to 1959, with "side Trips" to Tenn & NC. Now in OKLA
Any "Bama Folks" in Ok, give me a call, Roll Tide, Go Tigers!
BOB GWIN SR. Moderator cut: phone numberSee Woodlawn High School, Classmates, Memories, Reunions, Birmingham, AL (Class of 1959(
(QUOTE) ()

[PeggyM]

Originally Posted by TexasReb

Speaking as a native Texan with some decent sized Alabama roots (as in, next to Mississippi, it is where most of my ancestors came from after the War), I have really enjoyed reading this thread. The "menu" described above is what I grew up eating, was the staple at family reunions, and I still crave and cook today. As do most Texans (the true type, not yankee transplants! LOL).

I got a kick out of that mention of "soul food" and "country cookin'". Back in the 60's, was when that expression "soul food" first gained some popularity in the American vernacular. With most of the media and TV concerns being in the NE and California, it was associated with blacks in popular (i.e. non-Southern) mindset. The thing was, it confused many of us Southern whites because WE had eaten this great crusine described as "soul" all our lives! LOL

Great story I once read which typlified this confusion. There was some huge plant up in Michigan (maybe they made cars) which employed so many folks they had a company cafeteria. There were all races/ethnic groups represented, including many blacks and whites originally from the South (particularly from Alabama, Tennessee and Texas). Anyway, because of this natural diversity, there were special "food days" set aside for the respective cultures. For instance, there would be a "Greek Day" or "Italian Day" featuring the specialized foods.

Ok. Well, a group of Southern whites went to the cafeteria managment and asked about having a "Southern Day", which would have all the foods listed and mentioned. It was agreed to do so and the day was posted on the company bulletin board as, it turned out, happening to fall on the MLK holiday! This was just pure happenstance, but what was read was that Southern folks from Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, etc wanted to have a menu that, on MLK Day, would include such things as fried chicken and watermelon!

Oh man! Many northerners got "offended" and thought this was an intended insult...since none of them had any experience with the South. Their whole whole biased way of thinking was that what they regarded as "soul food" was to be exclusively associated with a so-called "negative stereotype" of blacks, with the same mindset being that the Southern whites were making fun.

As it turned out, not surprisingly at all, it was a group of Southern blacks who smoothed things over. They explained that "hey, down where we come from, ALL of us homefolk, black AND white eat this food. There is nothing racist about it."

Anyway, pretty good story, don't y'all agree?

Very interesting. I grew up in MI & this is exactly right. All of the auto factories have cafeterias and they do (or did) have the "ethnic/regional" foods days. Good story!

[Catfisher]

If you are in Mobile, try the Bar-B-Q at The Brick Pit. It is on Old Shell Road out near University Drive. I think it is the best in the state. I especially like the sauce. It is tangy and a little bit spicey.

[pennquaker09]

Originally Posted by Windy City John

squirrel and possum are local favorites

Are you being serious?

[Bravo35223]

Originally Posted by TexasReb

Speaking as a native Texan with some decent sized Alabama roots (as in, next to Mississippi, it is where most of my ancestors came from after the War), I have really enjoyed reading this thread. The "menu" described above is what I grew up eating, was the staple at family reunions, and I still crave and cook today. As do most Texans (the true type, not yankee transplants! LOL).

I got a kick out of that mention of "soul food" and "country cookin'". Back in the 60's, was when that expression "soul food" first gained some popularity in the American vernacular. With most of the media and TV concerns being in the NE and California, it was associated with blacks in popular (i.e. non-Southern) mindset. The thing was, it confused many of us Southern whites because WE had eaten this great crusine described as "soul" all our lives! LOL

Great story I once read which typlified this confusion. There was some huge plant up in Michigan (maybe they made cars) which employed so many folks they had a company cafeteria. There were all races/ethnic groups represented, including many blacks and whites originally from the South (particularly from Alabama, Tennessee and Texas). Anyway, because of this natural diversity, there were special "food days" set aside for the respective cultures. For instance, there would be a "Greek Day" or "Italian Day" featuring the specialized foods.

Ok. Well, a group of Southern whites went to the cafeteria managment and asked about having a "Southern Day", which would have all the foods listed and mentioned. It was agreed to do so and the day was posted on the company bulletin board as, it turned out, happening to fall on the MLK holiday! This was just pure happenstance, but what was read was that Southern folks from Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, etc wanted to have a menu that, on MLK Day, would include such things as fried chicken and watermelon!

Oh man! Many northerners got "offended" and thought this was an intended insult...since none of them had any experience with the South. Their whole whole biased way of thinking was that what they regarded as "soul food" was to be exclusively associated with a so-called "negative stereotype" of blacks, with the same mindset being that the Southern whites were making fun.

As it turned out, not surprisingly at all, it was a group of Southern blacks who smoothed things over. They explained that "hey, down where we come from, ALL of us homefolk, black AND white eat this food. There is nothing racist about it."

Anyway, pretty good story, don't y'all agree?

Yes it's an excellent story and very accurate.

"Meat and three" restaurants are very popular in the South. Birmingham, with a considerable amount of upscale nationally rated restaurants/chefs, has several meat and threes that are packed every lunch, with patrons that are almost exclusively white and black. Interestingly, it is the other enthnic groups here such as Latinos and Asians that are notably absent from these diners as well as 'relos' or people who are not originally from the south. This cuisine is indeed truly "southern" and the affinity for it is shared equally among whites and blacks.

Two of the most popular in Birmingham are Niki's West and Ted's, which are jammed at lunch time. Niki's West is in an industrial distribution center with large trucks coming and going to warehouses that surround it. Off the beaten path, Niki's West draws patrons from miles around who make it a 'destination restaurant' because otherwise, nobody in their right mind would be driving there to eat....

Collard greens, black eyed peas, squash casserole, flounder, grouper, meatloaf, Greek grilled chicken, macaroni and cheese, traditional and seven-layer salads and fresh desserts such as apple pie and peach cobbler make Niki's West a treasure....at the peak of lunch, there will be 75-100 people in the cafeteria line and the servers provide a steady stream of pressure to the patrons to make their decisions quickly to keep the line moving...

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writ...=222&RefID=222

[Southlander]

Originally Posted by Windy City John

squirrel and possum are local favorites

Originally Posted by pennquaker09

Are you being serious?

Well, yes. My late mother, who grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Western North Carolina, would sometimes yearn for squirrel stew. A lot of her friends here in Alabama were country folk who grew up during the Depression and developed a taste for both. If you're hungry enough...