Do you speak 'southern'? (Atlanta: gated, to eat, deal)

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by BajanYankee

Well, take a look at the menu for S&S Cafeteria.

S S Cafeteria Home cooked food

They have turnips every day, but not collards. So it might be a difference that runs along race lines. But the majority of the people cooking the food are AA.

In Atlanta, I have definitely noticed that turnip greens are more often served in restaurants than collards.

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by BajanYankee

Off topic, but there's also a lot of similarity between American southern cuisine and many West Indian dishes.

Yams
Bajan and Jamaican collards/callaloo
Macaroni Pie
Fried everything in Barbados
Rice and pea
Ochro/"Okra"
Stewed beef
Cou cou (sort of a cousin of grits)

I find there are definitely similarities. I had the biggest argument ever over whether what I call macaroni and cheese and macaroni pie were the same thing. We settled that as long as they were both baked and not made in a pot then we were on the same page. Even calling a dish rice and peas versus peas and rice became an issue. I won't even get into the flying fish thing between Barbados and Trinidad which actually has nothing to do with me lol became an issue for discussion.

And for the record, cou cou tastes less like grits than polenta to me. I don't mind the okra in it though.

You see why I have to run? I'm quite the nosy eater.

[BajanYankee]

Originally Posted by ElleKaye

In Atlanta, I have definitely noticed that turnip greens are more often served in restaurants than collards.

Well, my theory is that African American soul food restaurants will have collards more than turnips.

http://www.piccadilly.com/files/Piccadilly%20Menu.pdf

Picadilly has turnips, but not collards.

Southern Cuisine Restaurant in Atlanta with Sunday Brunch | Menu

Paschals has collards, but not turnips.

menuInside

Soul Vegetarian has collards, no turnips.

Q Time - Menu - Atlanta

Q-Time serves both.

Welcome to The Beautiful Restaurant

The Beautiful serves both.

JJ's Rib Shack - Atlanta, Georgia - 404-349-2717

JJ's Rib Shack has collards, no turnips.

Menu - The Original Big Daddy's Dish

Big Daddy serves both.

In NYC, nearly all soul food restaurants will have collard greens. Many don't even serve turnips. Sylvia's, for example, serves collards but not turnips. Pan Pan was the same. B. Smith's serves collards and mustards but not turnips. Georgia Brown's in DC only serves collards. Eatonville also serves collards but no turnips.

http://sylviasrestaurant.com/menus/

http://bsmith.com/restaurants/new-york/menus/

http://gbrowns.com/wp-content/upload...nu_Entrees.pdf

http://www.eatonvillerestaurant.com/index-1.html

I also think sweet potato pies are more commonly found in black restaurants.

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

No one has mentioned vegetable soup yet! Just had a big bowl for lunch... Good stuff!!!

I've been working on a project where I make use of my fresh veggies before they go bad at the end of the week, but it has not been a truly successful taste experience. I may have to add something processed liked kitchen bouquet to enhance the flavor.

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by ElleKaye

I've been working on a project where I make use of my fresh veggies before they go bad at the end of the week, but it has not been a truly successful taste experience. I may have to add something processed liked kitchen bouquet to enhance the flavor.

The secret is simmering the veggies for 4 or 5 hours in low sodium beef broth with some dried Italian Seasoning, black pepper and a helping of minced garlic.

[BajanYankee]

Interesting article.

Georgia and Alabama Southern is totally different from Appalachia Southern. Frying is more prevalent in the colder climates of the South than in the Deep South. They have more animals with fat on them whereas in Georgia, for instance, it’s warmer and so our native animals are leaner. Where would the slaves have gotten the oil to fry the chickens? They didn’t reach for a bottle of peanut oil like we do now. Those influences came into the picture much later. There are more cornbread recipes in Georgia and Alabama than in the Carolinas, where rice is more prevalent. In Appalachia, stews are more common. The slaves knew how to preserve and cook with what nature had to offer. Each region had its own micro-climate and trade routes. The food of the South is as diverse as its people.

The Real Roots of Southern Cuisine | Deep South Magazine – Southern Food, Travel & Lit

Maybe that's why my grandmother never made cornbread...

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

The secret is simmering the veggies for 4 or 5 hours in low sodium beef broth with some dried Italian Seasoning, black pepper and a helping of minced garlic.

Thanks! That sounds like a crockpot deal and a half.

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by BajanYankee

Well, my theory is that African American soul food restaurants will have collards more than turnips.

http://www.piccadilly.com/files/Piccadilly%20Menu.pdf

Picadilly has turnips, but not collards.

Southern Cuisine Restaurant in Atlanta with Sunday Brunch | Menu

Paschals has collards, but not turnips.

menuInside

Soul Vegetarian has collards, no turnips.

Q Time - Menu - Atlanta

Q-Time serves both.

Welcome to The Beautiful Restaurant

The Beautiful serves both.

JJ's Rib Shack - Atlanta, Georgia - 404-349-2717

JJ's Rib Shack has collards, no turnips.

Menu - The Original Big Daddy's Dish

Big Daddy serves both.

In NYC, nearly all soul food restaurants will have collard greens. Many don't even serve turnips. Sylvia's, for example, serves collards but not turnips. Pan Pan was the same. B. Smith's serves collards and mustards but not turnips. Georgia Brown's in DC only serves collards. Eatonville also serves collards but no turnips.

http://sylviasrestaurant.com/menus/

B. Smith's New York City - Menus

http://gbrowns.com/wp-content/upload...nu_Entrees.pdf

Menus

I also think sweet potato pies are more commonly found in black restaurants.

Thanks for the list because my experience has definitely been different here, but I definitively prefer collards. I forgot to reply about the callaloo earlier, but I find they taste very similar. The first time I tasted them was at a resort where that and saltfish (which was also on the menu) was on the menu and curiosity got the better of me. Aside from wondering why greens were offered for breakfast, I had no complaints. Side Note: I could pass on the dumplings and prefer cornbread.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by BajanYankee

Interesting article.



The Real Roots of Southern Cuisine | Deep South Magazine – Southern Food, Travel & Lit

Maybe that's why my grandmother never made cornbread...

That's interesting.

We did cornbread growing up, but not more than rice which was an everyday staple. But my aunt has a KILLER cornbread recipe; the richest and best I've ever tasted to this day. Whenever she makes some for holidays, I eat it before anything else.

[Southlander]

A guy from Brooklyn, with the name of Bajan Yankee, lecturing Southerners about Southern food.
That's rich.

Do you not understand that Southern food, like Southern accents, have a great deal of variation? Outsiders think all Southerners talk the same, and eat the same food.

Wrong.

Take rice.

YES, rice is prevalent in South Carolina and middle and eastern North Carolina.
But in the North Carolina mountains? Where do you grow rice? Potatoes are more common in western Carolina, as is corn which, BTW, was not necessarily grown for eating. Often the soil is thin in the mountains and finding a sunny spot is difficult. So what corn was grown was often turned into alcohol, which brought much more profit to the maker.

Turnip greens/mustard greens/collard greens - it's a seasonal thing. Turnips like cooler weather, so you're not going to find greens in the mid-summer through early fall in the South.

And since the Yankee talks about them being more prevalent in restaurants - remember, ordering, storing, and preparing vegetables in large quantities where a profit margin is necessary is an entirely different thing from fixing them at home for your family. Restaurants would prefer foods that can be frozen, so they can be purchased more cheaply in large quantities.