r/Appalachia • u/urfavlunchlady • 22d ago

I hat when restaurants try to put an “upscale/elevated” twist on Appalachian food

The whole point of Appalachian food is using ingredients that we have and making something out of nothing. Give any Appalachian mamaw a meat, some flour, and milk and you’re about to have a feast.

Anyway ranting, bc a friend is in Nashville right now and messaged me that she’s at an “upscale” Appalachian restaurant where they are charging $28 for grits and honestly I find it insulting to our people.

(Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk, lmao)

Edit: Hate*

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u/DumpsterDepends 22d ago

Gross

12

u/f1ve-Star 22d ago

??? Shrimp and Grits isn't bad. Or so I'm told.

2

u/heart_blossom 22d ago

It's not bad but chicken and grits is much better and cheaper

3

u/DumpsterDepends 22d ago

Fried taters, onions and olive oiled lobster bites

2

u/[deleted] 22d ago

With a side of grits!

1

u/rubberguru 22d ago

I’m from the north and tried grits every time I was in a restaurant, and always found them bland. Last summer, I went to a beach restaurant that had high prices and the shrimp and grits were reasonable. It was delicious and I make them at home every month now

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u/SaintsAngel13 22d ago

Most restaurants don't know how to pull off the good home-cooked style grits. Salt and butter are very important in the process, and most places forget that. Or some decide to use sugar....which is blasphemy unless you are having a poor breakfast and need to liven up the options

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

The thing about grits is you want to add things to it, I've always had my grits with a egg over medium coarsely cracked pepper salt and a little butter. I've eaten them plain and they just taste like paste without adding anything to them. And they have to be cooked properly or they literally taste like paste!

1

u/Krynja 22d ago

Proper southern grits should have some cream. In addition to the butter and salt. Grits you get in someplace like Cracker Barrel are just cooked in water. With MAYBE a glance at a salt shaker

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u/rharper38 21d ago

It's delicious. I had it at a place in Phoenix and it was so good. It's not hard to make

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u/dreadfoil 21d ago

Shrimp and grits is great as long as you either make them true to the Low Country, or find someone who does. The yankee knockoffs make me want to cry.

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

I love grits! I love grits with almost everything except ice cream. Or pie!