KNOW ANYONE STILL DISPLACED AFTER KATRINA?

I'm trying to put together a series of stories on New Orleanians who are still not home nearly two years after Katrina. I'm interested in all sorts of people--those who want to come home and can't, those who have landed happily where they are, those who are unsure. The most important thing is that they have a good story and tell it well. My hope is to get on the road next month and visit the people and places with the best stories.

Do you know of any Louisianians who are still away? Do you have contact information on them? Or, do you know of any social service organizations in your area that had worked with our people and therefore might know how to locate folks in the diaspora?

Any leads you have would be greatly appreciated. E-mail sfamail@olemiss.edu with ideas.

--Lolis Eric Elie

BOWEN'S ISLAND PROJECT ONLINE

In 2006, the year that Bowen's Island Restaurant celebrated its sixtieth anniversary, Robert Barber accepted a James Beard Award, honoring the place as an American Classic. Five months later, the restaurant that his late grandmother, May Bowen, started burned to the ground. What remained were the stories.

Sixty years of stories have been collected as part of the Bowen's Island Oral History Project. Our collection of interviews is a portrait of a place, painted by generations of family, loyal employees, and devoted customers.

Bowen's Island Restaurant reopened for buiness a few months after these interviews were conducted. Today, fresh oysters are being brought in from the marshes, new walls are ready to receive their marks, and new memories are being made.

Read the stories and step into the Bowen's Island state of mind.

Willie Mae's Scotch House Opens!

When the levees failed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Willie Mae's Scotch House, a corner restaurant (and residence) in the Treme neighborhood, succumbed to the destructive power of the rising water. Over the past year-and-one-half, Oxford, Mississippi, restaurateur John Currence has led volunteers from the Southern Foodways Alliance to restore this culinary and cultural landmark and put ninety-one-year-old Willie Mae Seaton back in her home, back in her kitchen.

In March, Seaton moved back into her home. On Monday, April 1st, Seaton stood at her stove once again, turning out the plates of fried chicken and beans and rice that, two years ago, earned her a James Beard Award (the highest culinary award bestowed in America) and served to inspire Currence and a host of others.

To date, nearly 200,000 dollars has been raised. And more than 200 volunteers - from as far away as California and as close as the French Quarter - have worked the job.

In the weeks to come, the Seaton family will endeavor to operate the restaurant on a daily basis. Call 504-822-9503 to get the latest hours and days of operation. As of today, May 22, Willie Mae's is open for lunch!

'Above the Line: Saving Willie Mae's Scotch House,' a documentary film by Joe York of the University of Mississippi Center for Documentary Projects, celebrates their efforts, the determination of Seaton, and the import of neighborhood New Orleans institutions. Look for a screening soon in your neck of the woods.

SFA Film at Big Apple BBQ Block Party June 9-10

Film Partnership between Big Apple Barbecue Block Party and Southern Foodways Alliance yields "Something Better than Barbecue"

"Something Better than Barbecue," a Joe York film, produced for the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party by the Southern Foodways Alliance and the Center for Documentary Projects at the University of Mississippi focuses on Chuck Ferrell of Chuck's Bar-B-Q in Opelika, Alabama.

Ferrell and his style of barbecue represent an oft overlooked barbecue subculture, one that finds its home on either side of the lower Chattahoochee River which separates Alabama from Georgia. At every turn, Ferrell and his ilk defy easy categorization and give the lie to those who believe that all barbecue obeys borders and plays by the rules.

Forget low and slow, down here the style of cooking is hot and fast. Forget the idea that mustard-based barbecue sauces belong in the Carolinas. Pulled pork? Not so much. Here you get it chopped or chipped, with barbecue slaw and a not-so-kosher dill crown.

But that's not all. As the free religious tracts that lie stacked beside the counter at Chuck's Bar-B-Q proclaim, for Ferrell there's "Something Better Than Barbecue." Twenty years after accepting Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior, Ferrell uses his barbecue joint to point wayward souls toward the Lord.

In exploring this aspect of Ferrell's food and faith, we find ourselves at a crossroads, the intersection of religion and barbecue, two worlds which many southerners find hard to separate. (Running time: 30 minutes.)

Culinary Historian Karen Hess Passes

Karen Hess, an esteemed culinary historian who did much to highlight African American contributions to the kitchen, has passed away. She was a friend to the SFA, speaking at one of our symposia and contributing an article to an edition of Cornbread Nation. She will be missed. Click on the link above for her obituary, from the New York Times

SOUTHERN BBQ TRAIL: TEXAS

"Southern barbecue is a proud thoroughbred whose bloodlines are easily traced. Texas barbecue is a feisty mutt with a whole lot of crazy relatives."

~Robb Walsh, from the TX introduction







The SFA launched the Southern BBQ Trail on-line last fall, unveiling a collection of interviews that document barbecue in Alabama. In January we set our sights on Texas.

For the past four months, the SFA has been collaborating with the American Studies Department at The University of Texas at Austin and the Central Texas Barbecue Association to begin documenting barbecue in Texas. Dr. Elizabeth Engelhardt dedicated her graduate level American Foodways class to the collection of fieldwork for the Trail. SFA oral historian, Amy Evans, traveled to Texas to give a workshop on conducting interviews. Graduate students sat down with restaurant owners in and around Austin to collect their stories. Robb Walsh, SFA member and author of Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook, wrote the introduction for this, our Texas leg of the Southern BBQ Trail.

Go here to view the project on-line. Listen to Ben Wash of Ben's Long Branch explain how brisket became the foundation of Texas barbecue. Learn what Vencil Mares of Taylor Cafe puts in his sauce. Meet the Texans who have dedicated their lives to the craft of 'cue.