A Family Tradition

I know that I haven't posted about last weekend's antics in New Orleans, but I could not wait to share the pictures below.

Charlie's grandfather, Charlie Fitts, has always told us how his parents and grandfather were buried in a cementary in the shadow of Bryant-Denny Stadium. This morning we found it and it was a pretty amazing site.

When we get back, and after I post about Tulane, I will expand more on this neat heritage.

Happy Saturday and Hotty Toddy!!

Madeline

Game 3: vs TEXAS

I'll be the first to say it, we lost. But that's okay. The game may have been abysmal at best for most; however, in regards of the Grove it's like we won the National Championship. We all 'put on the dog' (don't worry Minnie is okay) both in terms of tent adornment and Southern charm. It was a great day.

I'll recap this day in reverse, game first. We watched every second of the game until the last second. The week following the game I listened to Head to Head radio, read articles in print and online, and the one thing every non-Ole-Miss-fan sports follower wondered was why Ole Miss fans were so exicted over a 35 point loss. I have three answers for them: 1) there is an argument that two touchdowns were taken from us, and who knows what momentum changes there would have been in that circumstance; 2) we put up 31 points on a top team, that's a big deal; and 3) the team. The Rebels on the field had more drive, more heart, and more effort than in the past few seasons combined. They proudly played 60 minutes and did not quit. I tip my hat to them and proudly shout HOTTY TODDY!!!

The crowd at the game was amazing. There was so much red! Ole Miss fans in the past were not very good at following the game-day color dress code, but this year we're all doing our part. Before the game the band plays a very entertaining pre-game. Every time they make this "M" I see it as a "W" for "White" or for today it stood for "WIN"--maybe not on the scoreboard but in so many other ways.

 

 

Before moving to the Grove, I must mention that Betty White lead the "Are You Ready. You can see details here, it was pretty amazing. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

There is so much to talk about. We were told that Southern Living Magazine would be in the Grove and a time that they would allegedly be at our tent--so we went BIG this game. However, even though Southern Living was at the game it became apparent that they were there not to photograph tents but to enjoy the day themselves. They missed out on not coming by. . . Anyway, I will limit my normal chatter to captions and let the pictures tell the story.

 

 

For the tent this week we were dedicated to homemade, original ideas that we thought would be magazine worthy. One of my favorite hobbies is crocheting and loom knitting. For our cannisters that hold snacks, I crocheted cozies--Madeline original patterns. A lot happened that week so I had to finish the second one at approximately 9:30 a.m. in the Grove.

 

 

Here is the second one finished.

 

 

Here are the painted mason jars. The first time hanging! The original plan was to hang them but we were having difficulties. Trey, engineer-brother, came up with the idea of adding washers to the knots.

 

 

This is our back table that holds various things. Today we had a drink station with a new punch holder. Isn't it neat? It's divided to hold two different drinks. Both punches were packets of Kool-aid made with Sprite and fruit juice instead of water, they were both non-alcoholic. Fun Recommendation: pour some of the punch in ice trays and freeze. During the day to keep the punch cool add the punch ice cubes--this way you wont dilute the punch!

 

 

The chalkboard was all Trey's creation this week. There were a lot of pictures snapped, and it seemed to be well received by our Texas guests.

 

 

We out did ourselves on food this week, it was pretty amazing. Click here for pictures of all the food.

 

 

The stand-out food this week was Trey's Rebel Berry Cupcakes. He made them from scratch and even created the recipe! They are a basic yellow cupcake filled with strawberry and ginger jam, topped with a yummy icing and Pop Rocks!

 

 

These were some of our out-of-town guests.

 

 

Again, all the hard work paid off. It's a labor of love that takes group effort.

 

 



Game 2: vs UTEP

Wow, after this win Ole Miss has as many wins as we did last year! I say this with only pure excitement. I will always have hope for my Rebels, but it is a relief to know that we can do no worse than last year!

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Charlie and I received this platter as a wedding present, and I thought it would be fun to sit out. Under the tent, we enjoyed both husbands and wives stopping, admiring it and then getting their spouse's attention. This is true for the majority of married couples in the South.

 

 

Along with our display, each week we work very hard on the menu and coming up with tastey, homemade snacks. This week, the stand-out dish was the Southern Style Cuban Sandwiches, we made a few alterations to this Southern Living recipe. Yes the sandwiches were quite delicious, but the main perk was individually wrapping them. It took longer, but it made the sandwiches 1) easier to transport, 2) we didn't have to cover them to keep flys away, and 3) we had friends that were able to easily conceal them in their bag to enjoy during the game. There will be more wrapped sandwiches at our tent in the future!!

 

 

For the menu, pictures and descriptions of the rest of the food we brought, click here.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The Grove is best enjoyed with friends. I'm so excited that we got see Miss Zoey Herndon and her parents, Leah and Brian! Zoey is such a cutie.

 

We are able to see so many of our friends in the Grove because of our location. In Marketing, location is key--this principle also holds true for 'Groving.' We get noticed by our friends, opposing fans, tv crews and photographers because of our location. We are on the edge of the Grove so we're easy find and many people walk past our tent without ever intending to.

 

Directions to our tent: Go to the end of the "Walk of Champions" (brick walkway in the Grove), take a left and we're the 3rd double-red tent, the one with the flagpole.

Another description: across the street from the Thad Cochran Reseach Center and the large red and blue striped Pharmacy tent.

 

Because of our location, others have the opportunity to enjoy our tent, but we also have the opportunity to enjoy other features of the Ole Miss Game Day experience. An hour before kick-off, the Ole Miss Band has plays a warm-up in the heart of thr Grove, then lines up and marches to the stadium. It's great for us because they walk right in front of our tent.

 

 

The Grove Day was just as much of a sucess as the team had on the field! After packing up we had a chance to relax :o)

 

 

My Apologies

I apologize for my delay in updating the Blog. All the tabs have been updated and I am working on Game Day Articles now. My absence has been due to interviewing and now sinus crud. So please send me good vibes of health and of hope to soon be employed :o) I leave you with a picture of Minnie, our puppy-dog, she makes me smile.

Friday Food: Snackbar

Hey there, Rebel Nation!  This week, we have our first venture into a John Currence restaurant, his take on Bistro dining--Snackbar.  John Currence deserves the lion's share of the credit for the present-day food scene in Oxford.  Twenty years ago, he opened City Grocery on the square, and that kicked off a steady climb in the food culture of the area.  He now owns four restaurants (City Grocery, Boure, Snackbar, & Big Bad Breakfast), plus he had a hand in creating a number of other Oxford favorites, including Ajax Diner and Bottletree Bakery.  There's an expectation that anything affiliated with Currence will be top-notch, and that's why his restaurants are the most sought out by restaurant goers.

When Currence opened Snackbar, he opted away from the jam-packed Square, and chose a shopping center (gasp!) north of the Square.  And because of that, don't expect any kind of special ambience to envelope you outside the restaurant.  It's a shopping center, after all.  But when you step inside, the vibe is clear.  Dark woods, interesting lighting, a jovial but not raucous crowd...it's a cool place to eat, in the best sense of the word.  And there are subtle things that let you know this place is a little different.  The oyster bar is prominently featured; the water is served in carafes on the table; one of the bartenders has a handle-bar moustache.  The place strives to be alluringly distinctive, but in an understated way.

Let's start with drinks. Snackbar has, hands down, the most interesting cocktail menu in Oxford.  It changes seasonally and makes use of custom-made mixers (chipotle-infused agave syrup, housemade sweet potato liqueur, etc.).  Plus, these bartenders are the best mixologists in town.  If a drink is supposed to be stirred instead of shaken, it's stirred.  If the lemon peel needs to be flamed, it's flamed.  For a college town, that level of technique is often lacking, because let's face it, most folks don't care.  But for those that do care, Snackbar is the place to go.  At our dinner, I had one of the most fascinating drinks I'd had in a long while: an Antigua (anejo tequila, chipotle-infused agave, soda, and smoked orange).  Fascinating and delicious.

On the wine side, there's a really nice mix of reds or whites, fairly affordable.  Although you won't find, say, a sweet wine if you or a companion likes off-dry rieslings.  So, in that way, I guess the wine list is a little snobby, but again, that's kinda what this place caters to.  This is a foodie restaurant.

And you can see that most evidently on the menu.  John Currence has expertly nurtured the talent of chef Vishwesh Bhatt, and Bhatt has created a menu that has received regional and national recognition (including various nominations for Best New Chef in the region).  You start with the raw bar, which focuses on multiple varieties of oysters, shrimp, and crab.  This is the only place to consistently find fresh oysters in Oxford.  Additionally, starters venture into French staples, such as housemade pates and charcuterie.  You can sense that Currence basically set out to create a restaurant that has all the tasty food that Oxford didn't have previously.  And he achieves that wonderfully.

Soups and salads all look delicious, but I'll admit we've never had them.  We always start with oysters and charcuterie, then jump to entrees.  On the entree side, you'll find a unique fusion of Southern, European, and Indian cooking.  Here, salmon is served with tandoori spices and apple-walnut raita.  Confit of duck leg gets paired with butternut squash puree, sorghum, & bacon.  I personally recommend the Biloxi Stew, a mixed seafood offering with a delicious tomato broth scented with ginger and lemongrass.  Fusion at its best.  For more straightforward palates, there's a delicious roast chicken, as well as the bistro classic, steak frites (strip steak with fries).  And, speaking of the fries, those are truffle/parmesan fries--so tasty.  Other great sides include steamed popcorn rice and wilted kale.

The desserts aren't quite as adventurous as the entrees, but they're certainly delicious.  Pear & ginger tart, apple/cinnamon bread pudding, etc.  Tasty all around.  And just a quick word about service; the team there is quite good.  Knowledgeable and courteous.  Sometimes the crowd overwhelms them, particularly in the back, where they serve those sitting at the bar as well, but the vibe is so fun that you typically don't notice.

For those who prize the unique when in comes to dining, Snackbar blows every other Oxford restaurant out of the water.  And across the board, most of those risks pay off.  It takes and feels like a restaurant that doesn't belong in Oxford, but thank goodness it's here.

And as a bonus...perhaps when you eat there, John Currence will be around... :)

MY 10 SECONDS OF FAME

Many of you had a chance to see the clip below. If you didn't hear, this is the story behind it:

Hoda and Kathie Lee with the Today Show were holding a competition for them to "Invade Your University." The school that showed the most spirit by sending pictures and videos to them via Twitter would win them coming and hosting their show at your campus. So the morning of the UTEP game after setting up, I see a guy, Ryan who worked for Ole Miss, walking around with the following sign:

He filmed groups of people holding the sign and shouting Hotty Toddy and "We have the best tailgate in the country." Mother and I had an oppotunity to do this with our Grove neighbors the McCafferty's and Jones's. Once we finished, I asked Ryan if they had yet offered Hoda and Kathie Lee any alcohol. He said no and that he doubted the school would approve of it. I'll admit that I don't watch the Today Show everyday, but I have caught the last hour on occassion and if you don't know, Hoda and Kathie Lee have some type of cocktail or a glass of wine every morning. Anyway, Ryan amused me and filmed the video. It was a single take, with me 'wigging it' and in all honesty I never thought I would see it again. Because of the offer of alcohol, the University would not allow him to send it from their Twitter account, so he sent it from his own.

In the end, Ole Miss did not make the top 6 cut of schools for the nation to vote on. Oh well, we all get our 10 seconds of fame and even though they didn't say my name, I got mine.

Friday Food: McEwen's

Here we are, Rebels, with installment #2 of our Oxford food blogs, and this past weekend, we ate at McEwen's on the Square!

McEwen's is a relatively new addition to Oxford's restaurant line-up, having opened in 2011, but the owners have ample experience, considering their success with the original McEwen's in downtown Memphis.  We hope they can break the apparent curse that has plagued the location of its Oxford outpost; both Madre and Waltz (restaurants with strong promise) couldn't make things work there.

The restaurant itself retains virtually all the modern design elements (including pretty cool light fixtures) left by Waltz.  The only real change was to essentially convert the bar into all dining space; they did keep the actual bar itself, but they removed all the bar tables and almost all the stools!  And, just as a sidenote, I do think this hits at the dilemma of this particular location.  Whereas McEwen's' neighbors (Old Venice and City Grocery) get the benefit of two floors, where the bar can be completely sequestered from the restaurant, McEwen's has to fit it all into one.  That forces the owners into a delicate balancing act, because fine diners don't want a boisterous bar drowning out their conversations, and bar patrons don't want to feel cramped into a tight space, particularly when you're having to pay restaurant prices for alcohol.  This is very similar to the situation that 208 has to balance also.

McEwen's choice to go all-in on the restaurant side of that equation means that their success relies a lot on turning tables efficiently, since it won't get the profit lift you'd normally get from solid bar traffic.  Unfortunately, turning tables was a bit of challenge on the night of our visit.  We arrived for our reservation at 8, only to find that our table was not yet available.  Now, in all fairness, this kind of thing happens, particularly for the later reservations on a crowded night.  The restaurant has little control over how long it takes folks to eat; we understand that.  Of course, normally the restaurant would say "please have a seat in our bar while you wait," but since there was no place to do that, we walked over to The Blind Pig to kill time.  Fast forward 45 minutes, and our table is still not available, but we did have the option of squeezing into another table, so we took that opportunity.

McEwen's has a cocktail menu built with the aid of the highly touted mixologists at Alchemy in Memphis, and the drinks indeed were tasty.  The flavors on the menu are perhaps not as diverse as one would hope, but that's a minor quibble.  Here's a pic of one of their drinks, Daddy's Little Princess, with our blog's own version of Vanna White, the incomparable Beverly Hankins.

The wine menu is more mainstream than what we saw at Ravine last week, but there are some unique options to be found.  Our bottle of 2009 "Petite Petit" Petite Sirah was fun.  A fairly bold wine, with a good dose of acid to help it along with food.  The tannins perhaps linger a bit long, but still a good choice.

We did get ample time to enjoy our tasty beverages, because we learned first-hand why we were met with such delays early on: the kitchen was clearly backed up.  It took us over an hour to get our food.  The wait staff seemed a bit haphazard, but honestly, that's to be expected when the kitchen's taking forever to turn out the food.  After all, such a scenario makes all the tables antsy.

Once we did get the food, it was good, but most dishes missed out on being great.  For my appetizer I chose the saffron lobster risotto, which is a tricky dish to pull off.  The rice was cooked nicely, but the lobster had a tough time coming through the saffron and the parmesan.

Another appetizer, warm hazlenut crusted goat cheese salad, suffered because of its name.  When the salad came out, the goat cheese wasn't warm.  So, an otherwise enjoyable dish doesn't measure up just because of the expectation set by the menu.

When it comes to main courses, the McEwen's menu has a generous mix of meat, seafood, and vegetarian offerings, all with thoughtful sides to accompany each.  A number of the entrees are signature dishes also found on the menu at the original McEwen's.  Everyone at the table seemed pleased with their entrees. There's definite skill in the kitchen; where we found things lacking were in the details, in the things that require a bit of finesse.  For instance, my entree was the signature sweet potato crusted catfish.

The fish, the greens, and the mac-and-cheese were all delicious.  But as you can tell, my fish was doused in potent creole honey mustard.  That caused a problem on two levels: first, that great sweet potato crust turned to mush.  Second, until I removed the entire crust/sauce mixture, all I could taste was sauce.  Think of a superb steak...drenched in A1.  It was very close to being amazing, but a technical error caused it to miss the mark.

The pastry chef at McEwen's, Burton Webb, has a number of tasty sweet treats to close out the meal.  We noticed that the dessert menu seemed like a cousin of the one we saw at Ravine, and we later found out that Burton does double duty at both restaurants.  So, last week's brown-sugar bourbon creme brulee meets its match with this week's Wild Turkey creme brulee. :)

But don't worry.  There are plenty of other choices for anyone who feels like neither creme nor brulee. And we promise not to mention creme brulee in next week's blog. ;)

Overall, the experience was good.  In spite of the issues that we noticed, the restaurant is still worth going to.  On a less hectic night, reservations wouldn't be delayed, and the kitchen would be able to handle the traffic, hopefully to the point that the dishes could be finished with polish.  And all of these are common problems of a restaurant that begins to branch out to multiple locations.  The owners in Memphis clearly have a vision that works; they just haven't been able to translate the details of that vision to their Oxford location quite yet.  We remain optimistic.

This coming weekend, we'll be at Snackbar to celebrate the craziness that will be the Texas game.  And since John T. Edge announced on Twitter that Snackbar was an excellent place for visitors to eat at, I'm sure it'll be packed.  Thank goodness we have reservations!

Same Song Second Verse

Here are some teaser pics of the tent. We out did ourselves today. The last picture is of a passerby . . . (The comments on other person's shirts are not necessarily the opinions of everyone at the tent, but some agree.)

Dont Question What Moma Can Do

Friday Food: Ravine

On game weekends, Saturday food is all about tailgating.  And in Oxford, that specifically means Grove food.  But Friday night offers the chance to eat out.  With so many great choices in Oxford and Lafayette County, it made sense to highlight some throughout the season.

Before we start, though, keep in mind that eating out in Oxford on game weekends requires long-term planning.  To ensure you have a seat at the best restaurants, plan to start booking in May.  Some restaurants open their football reservation books on June 1; plan to call right when their phone lines open.  Those who wait until the last minute risk having to settle for McDonald's.  Well, perhaps not that bad, but you won't likely get into City Grocery.

We'll kick things off with the place that's become our absolute favorite dining experience on game weekends: Ravine.  For those of you that stick close to the Square, Ravine may not be familiar to you, because it's south of the Square...way south.  As in, down Lamar Avenue, over the highway, past the hospital, on a county road offshoot.  But that's the beauty of this place.  Game weekends turn all the great restaurants on/near the Square into frenetic madhouses.  At Ravine, its relative remoteness keeps the crowds away.  You can genuinely enjoy your food, your beverage, and your company.

The restaurant is situated in a cabin-turned-b&b nestled in the woods.  I'll admit, the first time you drive out there, you drive just far enough to think you're lost, and then you see the sign.  But that's all by design.  The building itself is tastefully appointed; tables are spaced comfortably (again, not the norm for other restaurants on game weekends).  The moment you walk in, you realize you'll get the opportunity to relax.

It's apparent that owners Joel and Cori Miller aim to keep it that way, too.  They've intentionally kept their bar small--less than 10 seats.  And they are very particular about the alcohol offerings as well.  You won't find a Bud Light or a Miller Lite.  You won't even find a Southern Pecan.  Liquors are basically kept to one "well" and one "top-shelf" variety.  The focus is squarely on wine, and interesting wines at that.  As an example, here's the bottle we shared last Friday--the 2010 Briccotondo Fontanafredda Barbera Piemonte.  (How's that for a mouthful?)

Very briefly, Barbera Piemonte is an Italian grape variety native to Northwest Italy, but it has proliferated throughout Italy, including the Northeastern commune of Fontanafredda.  Anyway, it's delicious with food.  Lots of fruit and acid up front, but with some good structure you don't always get from, say, a pinot noir.  It plays well with lots of stuff.  And a bargain too: $30 for the bottle!  Oh, and just to show how well they do things at Ravine...the wine is served at actual cellar temperature, not room temperature.

The food equally shines at Ravine.  Joel is very intentional about sourcing his food locally, and the menu highlights all the local and regional purveyors that he uses.  The dishes are uncomplicated but thoughtful--the perfect balance for our family, which has a combination of adventurous and traditional palates.  Everything starts with an amuse bouche (a foodie's delight--Friday's amuse was roasted pork belly on crostini), and from there you'll find plates that strike the perfect Southern balance between comfort and freshness (butter braised mushrooms on polenta; tomato, cucumber, and feta salad; duck breast over wild rice pancakes; peach BBQ pork chop).  There's typically a fish special, and last Friday three of us enjoyed the Florida grouper with risotto and red pepper sauce.  Forgive the graininess of this photo; the intimate lighting caused a challenge with getting a good shot, so we had to doctor the pic so you could see it.

Lastly, there's also a vegetarian offering on the menu, for those who prefer to eat sans meat or fish.  As for desserts, I'll admit that in the past they have sometimes felt like an afterthought, but over time they've steadily figured out how to work some interest into their sweet dishes.  In particular, they now like to play with flavors of creme brulee.  And let's face it, who doesn't drool at the thought of brown sugar-bourbon creme brulee?

We'd be remiss if we didn't mention that the staff at Ravine is very well-trained--attentive, knowledgeable, and personable.  There's a clear line between the, perhaps, three restaurants in Oxford with decent wait staffs and all the rest.  Ravine's team is definitely at/near the top.

So, to sum everything up, the food is great, and the service is great.  And if your group is ok going outside the Square for dinner, you'll be rewarded with a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere in which to enjoy your meal.  Schedule the meal early, and you'll still have plenty of time afterwards to rub elbows, and shoulders, and knees, with the 500 other people clammering for drinks at the Burgundy Room. ;)

This week, for the UTEP game, we're headed to McEwen's.  Look for the post on it next week!

My 3 Seconds of Fame!

Ole Miss Athletics held to their promise and made a video of the opening game. The sandwiches and I are between 1:10-1:13. You can even see Trey smiling in the background. I'm excited to see what else they will make. You can subscribe (or just view) to the Ole Miss Athletics YouTube channel to see their current and future videos.

 

 

--M

There Has to Be a Day One

This was a great video played before and during the game.

 

 

I'm glad to say that day one is over that we had a day won. 

Game 1: vs Central Arkansas

WE WON!!!! Ole Miss 1-0

(I couldn't wait to write that part)

I'm so glad we won the game. Ole Miss had not won a home opener since 2009 . . . wow. And right now we're undefeated :o)

Before the game was a very crucial part--GROVING! Charlie and I began setting up at 7:30 a.m.--yes, kickoff wasn't until 6:00 p.m.--I wasn't kidding when I said we were serious Ole Miss fans.

Here are some pictures taken before the game that were not posted under WE ARE HERE!!! 

 

This was one of several offerings at our tent: pork tenderloin sandwiches. Charlie made them, and they were delicious! These will soon be famous sandwiches. A lady from the Athletic Department photographed and filmed a lot of features of our tent, but these sandwiches got extra attention. She filmed me 5+ times taking the cover off of them. She said that Ole Miss Athletics was using more social media to promote the school and that she would be making videos for YouTube. So supposedly these sandwiches will be in a YouTube video in a few weeks. If I find the video, I'll post it.

 



Here are Charlie and I with our great friends Cole and Megan McCarty. They are expecting a little Rebel, Miss Mary Leighton, in November. If you saw the menu for today's game the "Cole's Crackers" came from this guy. Their family are also life-long Rebels and they have a pretty sweet tailgating operation in the Circle.

 

 

Our tent is just off of the main walk-way through the Grove, "The Walk of Champions." Charlie took this picture of the massive crowd waiting for "Walk-Through." Two hours before the game the football team and coaches walk down the Walk of Champions where fans show their support by shouting Hotty Toddy and highfiving players. This was Coach Freeze's first walk-through as head coach.

 

 

 

Here is offensive liner Terrell Brown; at 6'10" 385lbs you can tell he enjoyed having everyone reach his high-five. At least he was nice enough to not extend his arms up the entire way. Here is his complete player profile.

 

 

 

The crowd at the game was great!! I only have pictures of pre-game stadium but the "white-out" looked awesome and there were more 50,000 in attendance. Here was the team leaving the field after warm-up.

 





I'm also glad to say that when the team ran out to begin the game, they did not suffer a fate similar to MSU's.
What to do:

What NOT to do:

 

I know I shouldn't laugh . . .

 

 

We had a great time, and we stayed for the ENTIRE game. It's sad that Ole Miss fans tend the leave the game early for one of four reasons: 1) we are so far behind they can't watch anymore; 2) we are so far ahead that the other team can't come back; 3) we want to get back to the Grove to open the tent before the crowd gets there; or 4) we want to beat traffic. Yes, in the past I've been guilty of these offenses, but not this year!

 



Authors

Happy Labor Day!

Before I, Madeline, post anything else I would like to introduce you to the other two authors that will be posting here: 1) my hubby Charlie, and 2) my brother Trey. Since this is "OUR Rebel Roadtrip" it's only right if Charlie joins the fun. Also, Trey will be with us for all the home games and one of the away games. Trey is a fantastic home-chef and is a foodie at heart, so he'll probably comment mostly about all the delicious tasties we'll be enjoying.

--M

WE ARE HERE!!!

I will organize and repost pictures Sunday,  but for now here is a taste of our setup.