Grandma's Skillet

Generally the hubster and I avoid buffets like the plague, both when we are at home and when we travel. So last Sunday morning as we drove around Corinth Mississippi trying to find a killer place for lunch, we quickly drove past Grandma's Skillet. Trip Advisor had a few places listed in Corinth that sounded pretty darn yummy. The problem was, it was Sunday. If you've even been in the south on a Sunday you know where I'm going with this. Yup, they roll up the sidewalks in Corinth by 9:00pm on Saturday night and don't reopen them until Monday. We'd learned that when we stopped in the local Kmart at 8:45pm the night before to buy extra pillows and were told we had 15 minutes to make our purchases. Even the liquor store closed at 9:00pm.

After driving around Corinth for close to an hour I demanded the hubster pull into the next place we came to. I didn't care if it was a McDonalds or whatever. I was hungry! Fortunately it was Grandma's Skillet.

We were concerned, as we walked in, because there weren't any other customers in there. (That changed drastically by the time we left) But we were greeted so warmly that it would have felt too rude to turn around and walk out. So we stayed. And boy-howdy were we glad we did!

 

Start out your experience with a frosty glass of sweet tea, because after all, this is the south. Then order your meat. All of the sides are served buffet style and are unlimited. More on those in a minute. But now, back to the meat. There were several options. I opted for roast pork while the hubster went for fried chicken strips. I was imagining chicken fingers and wanted no part of that. Then the meats arrived. I changed my tune pretty quick. The chicken strips was actually a chicken breast which they'd removed from the bone and cut in half. It tasted like home fried chicken. It was amazing! And the roast pork? It was an oven roasted pork, so tender, it fell in shreds on the plate and was topped with cooking juices. To. Die. For.

 

Now the sides. They have a pizza buffet. We didn't try any of that so I can't say if it was good or not. Our eyes were honed in on the down-home sides. Cooked like my southern Grandmother used to cook, YUM is the best way to describe the sides. There were fried potatoes, mashed potatoes, fried squash, fried okra, green beans, white beans, black eyed peas, butter beans, purple hull peas, corn, turnip greens, corn,  and cornbread fritters. (I've forgotten about ten other sides, but believe me when I say there is a large variety) And as if that wasn't enough, they had a salad bar.

 

If you have any room left after all of that (and make sure you do) zero your sights on the dessert buffet. Homemade banana pudding with meriange topping! And did I mention the homemade bread pudding made from their homemade biscuits? What genius! Who would have ever thought to turn a light, fluffy biscuit into bread pudding? It works. It works very, very well. It works so well, I wouldn't doubt some people eat dessert first, just to make sure they have room for it.

I didn't bring my camera in Grandma's because I had no idea what a great meal it was going to be. And by the time I realized I was in Southern food Heaven, I was in a food frenzy and wasn't about to leave my plate so I could grab my camera. I was in such a food coma, I didn't even think to take a picture with my phone until we were almost done. Southern food will do that to you. That's why we like it!

If you should find yourself anywhere near Corinth MS, Stop by Grandma's Skillet and tell Grandma to keep the sweet tea pitcher full, cause we'll be back soon!

 

Grandma's Skillet

602 South Cass Street
Corinth MS 38834

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Grandmothers-Iron-Skillet-Kitchen/251374331581178

 

 

Russell’s House of Beef

Spending the night in Corinth Mississippi Saturday night, after a full day of travel and Battlefield exploration at Shiloh, we were starved. The first recommendation out of the desk clerk’s mouth when we asked her where to eat, was Russell’s.

Walking into Russell’s, the first thing you see is the salad bar. I admit I was expecting a mile long salad buffet with every imaginable green and salad fixing you can think of because the sign on the outside of the building said, “Home of our world famous salad bar.” I found the salad bar to be very lackluster and sparse with only the barest of the basics. Immediately my expectations lowered to practically nil.

 

We decided to do a shared meal. It’s an option we often do so we can try several things. The hubster order the 18oz ribeye with hand-cut fries while I opted for the shrimp skewers; two skewers(ten on each) grilled shrimp. When the food came he cut off half of his steak for me and I gave him one of the shrimp skewers.

 

Wow. Seriously, that’s all I can say; wow. Their steaks and even the shrimp were grilled over an open pit fire that most definitely contained wood of some sort. Close your eyes as you take a bite of steak and shrimp. In your minds eye you can see yourself sitting around a campfire while your food cooks over it, can’t you? Yeah, they’re that good.

 

When you aren’t shoving steak in your pie hole with both fists, you’ll be munching on their hand cut fries. The most delightful, flavorful garlic bread comes with your meal. Doesn’t matter to me; I never eat the bread. I ate the garlic bread! Delightfully crisp with just the right amount of butter, it wasn’t overpowering with garlic flavor, but had just enough.

You'll want to make sure you go early though because the entire town rolls up it's sidewalks by 9:00 o'clock. Seriously! Even the Kmart and liquor store closed at 9:00 and on a Saturday night to boot.

 

Russell’s House of Beef
104 U.S. 72
Corinth MS 38824

http://www.russellsbeefhouse.com/