Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Conversation Bites Food in Context
Posted by Chris Chamberlain on Tue, Sep 22, 2009 at 2:55 PM
One of my favorite places to eat and drink when I'm at our cabin in Sewanee is Shenanigans. Whenever I walk through the crooked front door that harkens back to Opryland's Angle Inn, life slows down and I look forward to my mason jar runnething over with slightly flat Miller Lite draught.
Amongst the standard "I feel more like I did when I came in here than I do now" and "flush twice, it's a long way to the SAE house" graffiti, there used to be a napkin taped to the counter with a quote from a patron.
It said, "My boyfriend just broke up with me and I just drove all the way from Nashville and all I want is some SHENANIGAN'S FRENCH FRIES!"
Talk about evocative. I always hoped that her story had a happy ending, but I can also totally identify with her need for a certain food in a certain place at a certain time. And Shenanigans fries aren't even that great, but I can see how they might be comforting.
Some food needs to be eaten in context, whether it's good or not. It just is. I returned to my alma mater for my ten year reunion in 19(hmmmty-hmm) and was overwhelmed by the need to drive up in the forests near campus to grab a burger and a beer at my traditional college haunt, Rossotti's Beer Garden. Never mind the fact that I had given up red meat for the five years prior, sometimes you just gotta have one.
And then sometimes you just gotta spend the entire class party that night curled up on the floor of a Porta-John outside of a gymnasium full of ex-girlfriends you were hoping to hook up with. Regrets, I've had a few.
Brats at a ballgame, margaritas at a beachfront bar, fondue at an orgy...so what food do you have to eat where? And where is it that makes you have to eat a certain food?
Comments (13)
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Long car trips = bag of Cheetos. It's not a trip without Cheetos. A trip to Huntsville means Big Bob Gibson's barbecue, even tho' it ain't all that.
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Whenever I'm in Knoxville, I have to stop at Sam & Andy's for a steamed deli sandwich. The original was on the Strip but It got torn down about 10 years agoc. There is another one out in Farragut. Not quite the same but the sandwiches still rock!
I'm originally a Jersey girl, and trips back require 'real' pizza, pierogi, penne vodka, and the staple - pork roll, egg and cheese on an onion bagel with ketchup, salt and pepper.
Photography does not properly convey the angle of decrepitude of that door. It must be at a 10 degree angle -- you worry that the building will fall while you're in it.
I haven't been in Shenanigans in years since I used to go to music camp in Sewanee as a kid. Now I'm craving it.
When in Mobile, AL - Jerusalem Cafe. Best Middle Eastern/Mediterranean restaurant.
In Knoxville - Tomato Head, Naples, and King Tut's (best little Mediterranean place you've never heard of - look it up if you're in town and take cash, Mo will appreciate it!)
The only one that really springs to mind is Huey's ) in Memphis (midtown location ONLY, thankyouverymuch, where it will always be a Smoky Melt for me. It's a taste so tied up with being a poverty-stricken art school student that I'm not really sure I can ever even think about a cheddar burger without thinking of that time. But there's something so specific about the Huey's version
I'll never be able to set foot in Chicago without having some deep dish pizza and visiting the Weber restuarant. If I were a rich man, I'd open up a Weber restuarnt in Nashville just so I could have it anytime.
I've never met a person from Tri Cities that doesn't jones for Pal's, specifically their iced tea.
Can somebody tell me what's up with that?
Shenanigans has epic graffiti. I loved the graffito that said "Remember, no matter how cute you may be, someone, somewhere is sick of your shit."
I'm with BW. A trip to (or through) Knoxville isn't complete without a steamed sub. I like Gus's.
Also, boiled peanuts en route to the Gulf... ok, Popeye's fried chicken, too.
Every trip to Memphis requires a stop at Panda Garden (formerly Formosa) and Memphis Pizza Cafe (Overton Square). And should I ever be unfortunate enough to go back to Destin, I won't leave without an egg salad sandwich from The Donut Hole.
I still weep for the closed Dairy Queen in Paris, Tennessee that was a major part of my childhood. Every trip to my grandmother's house (about once every six weeks) included a stop there. And at a Fina gas station (who knows what it is now) on Hwy 45 north of Jackson. We always stopped there and my mom would actually let me get a treat from the end cap--a Suzy Q or a Banana Flip. A major indulgence.
BW (and morecofee), the original steamed joint - to my knowledge, anyway - was Nixon's Deli, now with multiple locations interspersed throughout. Try them and tell me how they rate. Corner Pub in the Woods claims to have steamed sandwiches as well - anyone know how they compare?
If I'm driving to Santa Fe, the road gets hit early, like 4AM early, so that 1,000 miles later at the 14-15 hour mark I can be in Amarillo with plenty of time for the Big Texan Steak Ranch. It's not the best steak, but it's consistent and good and, coupled with the place's own entertainment factor, it's just enough of an objective that it seems to make the drive shorter. And damn if that bock beer doesn't go down well knowing there's a pillow waiting for my little head. Then it's up in the morning and in 3 1/2 hours I'm having a green chile cheeseburger at Bobcat Bite. Later, it's the highwater mark for chile rellenos at Tiny's. The next day, breakfast of Huevos Rancheros with (of course) green chile at Horseman's Haven. (Oh, how I miss South by Southwest...)
If I'm headed the other direction to parts South and East, it's up early for a breakfast stop in Dalton at Mr. Biscuit. I think maybe I just like the name, but they are very good at what they do, and the biscuits are flaky and full-sized, not bite-sized ala Loveless. And the waitresses all call you "honey" in that voice only a casting director could love.
