Eat Arkansas: Food tourism

Blogging food all over the state.

Food tourism

The UA today announces the hiring of an expert in "culinary tourism" to hold an endowed chair in hospitality in the School of Human Environmental Sciences. I kid you not. These titles are real. I'm not complaining. How could you go wrong with a guy whose start in the business was as operator of Casey's Dairy Deli.

But academia-funning aside, I think there's something in this culinary tourism thing. It occurs to me that all my travel is culinary tourism. I go somewhere to eat different food, drink different beer and wine. Ah, Italy, Ah, France. Ah, Argentina.

Ah, Arkansas? I'll take nominations for Arkansas food worthy of a culinary tourist trail. Please, try to think beyond barbecue, worthy though it is.

My own culinary tourism turns me back to the new UA prof, however. I once went to Canada, where he's worked most recently in an academic role. The maple syrup was great. I couldn't recommend much else in the culinary line, except the French-themed food in Montreal and Schwarz's, the corned beef emporium. My enduring memory, not necessarily a pleasant one, is of the French-Canadian national dish, poutine. (pictured at top). The deluxe version features a huge haystack of french fries topped with brown gravy, cheese curds and chopped up hot dogs.

NOTE: I also posted this on the Arkansas Blog.

Posted by Max Brantley on August 29, 2007 12:28 PM | Permalink

Comments

Perhaps the first research project might be to find out why you can't get any Arkansas wines in Arkansas' Restaurants.

Posted by: MysteryShopper | August 29, 2007 03:45 PM

That research project would take about two nanoseconds: Arkansas wine is so inferior to California, French and Italian wines (not to mention Oregon and Washington, Chile and Australia, Argentina and South Africa) that it hardly can be called wine. Any self-respecting wine lover would never choose it.

Posted by: Big Fun | August 29, 2007 08:26 PM

Unless you happen to be any self-respecting ARKANSAS wine lover. I'm sure there must be some out there.

Ultimately, good is good by your own standards, not by what some oenophile tells you that you should think is good.

Posted by: Arkansas Student | August 31, 2007 12:03 AM

Hey, I'm Arkie proud, through and through, but Wiederkehr Pink Catawba just doesn't quite stack up. And Arkansas wineries can't really grow the grapes to make big reds that most California wine fans love. That's why you'll see Post "American" cabernet and such. They have to source the grapes from somewhere outside Arkansas. And believe me, these ain't California grapes.

Posted by: Big Fun | August 31, 2007 07:04 AM

Not sure if its worthy of the culinary trail, but on a round trip to Fayetteville, I recently did a comparison of Russellvile burgers at Feltner's Whataburger v. CJ Butcher Burger. Feltner's is good but C.J.'s is much better if you want a serious burger. Meat is ground fresh daily in-house. 1/3 lb. Nicely cooked. It will cure your burger craving. More similar to a burger at Doe's than the thin type at Feltners.

I also highly recommend their chocolate malts.

Posted by: arkansaist | August 31, 2007 11:11 AM

Poutine looks and sounds just awful.

Posted by: bopbamboom | August 31, 2007 04:06 PM

where is cj butcher? i have been a feltner fan for as long as they have been open and have trouble if somebody can beat them.

Posted by: zonker | September 2, 2007 11:47 AM

CJ's is located just off I-40, at the same Russellville exit as Feltner's, but you turn right at the exit, then look on your left and there it is.

Posted by: arkansaist | September 2, 2007 11:52 AM