You’re between sessions of your company retreat. The day’s last speaker at your association’s annual convention has left the stage. The trade show is winding down.
And you’re hungry.
Somewhere out of the way, but closer than you think, is a local gem of a food destination doing what it has always done — dishing up some of the best regional cuisine, local favorites and traditional dishes Arkansas has to offer.
Sure you’ll want to visit the new urban showcases for some of the state’s top chefs and bartenders. But somewhere back among the trees you’ll find fare that can compete with anything that makes its home on a white tablecloth.
Demographics, agriculture, geography, history and migration patterns have had an impact on the eating habits and menus in the various regions of Arkansas. From each corner of the state as well as its center, concoctions have evolved and grown into menu mainstays and local legends to stimulate the taste buds.
“The best way to look at Arkansas cuisine is viewing it as more than one topic,” says author and Arkansas food expert Kat Robinson, who regularly explores the state’s food scene in her blog “Tie Dye Travels With Kat Robinson.”
Northwest Noshes
In northwest Arkansas, Robinson notes how the area’s Italian heritage collided with the poultry industry to give the state fried chicken and spaghetti, as perfected at places like Mama Z’s in Springdale and Tontitown’s Venesian Inn, among other local eateries, and found at the Tontitown Grape Festival.
“This is the go-to heritage dish in that particular area,” Robinson says.
Influences ranging from southeast Asian to Mexican to German make it hard to pin down a staple in Fort Smith, Robinson says, but savory, Korean pho soup makes a strong statement, while the city’s Calico County is generous with its fluffy cinnamon rolls.
A little further south, the pickle-producing Atkins area is a wellspring for the crispy, bar-food-favorite fried pickles.
Northeast Treats
It’s hard to talk about the northeast region of Arkansas without talking about rice, Arkansas’ No. 1 crop, Robinson says. But while the grain finds its way into a number of dishes, with plenty of “brown gravy everywhere,” Robinson notes the area’s fondness for bread pudding.
Originating as a sweet and tasty way to keep unused bread and other ingredients from wasting, the concoction is versatile when it comes to its main ingredients. Some area restaurants have used hamburger buns and others have made biscuit pudding.
“They don’t brag about it because it’s a dish you make to use up stuff,” Robinson says.
In a building that dates to the early 1900s, the Wilson Cafe, in Wilson, and chef Joe Cartwright whip up a doughnut pudding, a sinful combination of cake and creaminess definitely worth a brag or two.
Savoring The Central
The great Arkansas-Texas cheese dip war is over and central Arkansas has declared victory, staking its claim as the birthplace of the yellow cheese dip that clings to a tortilla chip like buttery gold.
Possibly invented by original Mexico Chiquito owner Blackie Donnelly at his North Little Rock Mexico Chiquito in 1935, or possibly originating in Hot Springs, the beloved snack and appetizer continues to dot local tables while enjoying nationwide devotion. New places like Lost Forty Brewing and Heights Taco and Tamale Co., both in Little Rock, are upholding the cheese dip tradition, Robinson says.
While barbecue is big everywhere and had to come up sooner or later, Robinson says the piquant, vinegar-based sauce at Sims BBQ, in Little Rock, is unique.
“Their sauce is like nobody else’s,” she says.
Southwest Samples
Who wants to slave over a stove during a southwestern summer?
From this part of the state comes the seasonal “summer plate,” a meatless staple that no one has to break a sweat to make or eat if they don’t want to. The plate traditionally offers, but is not restricted to, things like cornbread, red tomatoes, white onions, cantaloupe, purple hull peas and corn off the cob.
“It was always served cold because we didn’t have air conditioning and we didn’t want to heat up the house,” Robinson says.
Sugar rice is a breakfast staple and thanks to the woods and water bodies of the rural region, diets are enhanced by venison and fish.
Because of local legends like McClard’s Bar-B-Q and Stubby’s BBQ, Hot Springs is a strong representative of the state’s barbecue tradition. In Texarakana, the family owned Golden Lady has been serving up soul food and home cooking for close to 30 years.
Southeast Eats
A fusion of Italian and Mexican heritage has given the Delta region a unique brand of tamale represented by Pasquale’s Tamales of Helena and Rhoda’s Famous Hot Tamales in Lake Village, among others.
The grandfather of Pasquale’s proprietor Joe St. Columbia settled in the Helena area and taught local Mexican laborers how to make pasta while they taught him tamales. The Italian influence meant beef instead of pork and a different array of spices.
“Tamales is a favorite of the whole Delta,” Robinson says.
Robinson notes that in the Delta, fish on Friday meant catfish, while Saturday was for steak. Some of the Southeast region’s representative steakhouses include the Colonial Steakhouse, which makes its home in an old, two-story schoolhouse in Pine Bluff, and Taylor’s Steakhouse outside Dumas.
Capital Treats
If your event is keeping you in Little Rock you’re in good hands when it comes to wining and dining.
A growing culinary scene has put the state capital on the map as a foodie destination acclaimed by Food & Wine, Southern Living and Forbes magazines. Award winners and alumni from top culinary schools, along with a variety of artisan food producers, continue to provide variety and flavor in an eclectic assortment of establishments, some of them trendy and new and some of them long-time mainstays.
Keeping pace with the city’s growth as a food destination is the explosion of microbreweries and brew pubs. For beer, wine and spirits enthusiasts, it is advisable to pick up a Locally Labeled passport and guide to plan tours and tastings.
Groups can also rent the Toddy Trolley or join a tour on the Arkansas Brews Cruise to visit the area’s range of establishments.
For local flavor as well as local color, we turned to veteran journalist and columnist Rex Nelson, the force behind the Southern Fried blog, to get his recommendations for out-of-the-way places serving up Arkansas staples.
Northwest
Establishment: Monte Ne Inn
City closest: Rogers
Menu: All-you-can-eat fried chicken
What makes it unique: Meals are served family style. Be sure to call in advance to let them know you’re coming. And come hungry.
What you’re having: Chicken, of course
Why it’s good: It’s just like having dinner at your grandmother’s house (back in the days when grandmother actually cooked on Sunday).
Southeast
Establishment: Taylor’s Steakhouse
City closest: Dumas
Menu: Dry-aged beef
What makes it unique: Aged beef just like you would get at a high-dollar steakhouse in a big city. But you’re in an old country store adjacent to a soybean field.
What you’re having: Bone-in ribeye
Why it’s good: It’s the best steak in Arkansas. Who would think you would find that in rural southeast Arkansas? You have to experience it to believe it.
Southwest
Establishment: Doc’s at Garland
City closest: Texarkana
Menu: Catfish and steaks
What makes it unique: It’s in a small community on the banks of the Red River that actually has two restaurants (the other is Westshore) that draw people from all over southwest Arkansas on Friday and Saturday nights.
What you’re having: Fried catfish
Why it’s good: There’s nothing like eating catfish in a small southern community on a Friday night, especially when you’re near a big, slow river that’s full of catfish.
Northeast
Establishment: Jerry’s in Trumann
City closest: Jonesboro
Menu: Steaks
What makes it unique: It’s like stepping into a beer joint in a town that has long been known for its beer joints. But the steaks are some of the best in this corner of the state.
What you’re having: A large ribeye sprinkled with Jerry’s special seasoning
Why it’s good: This place has stood the test of time. It has been around since 1981 when Jerry Pillow used a modified backyard grill from Sears to cook the steaks.
Central
Establishment: Murry’s on U.S. Highway 70
City closest: Hazen
Menu: Catfish, seafood, steaks
What makes it unique: It started in DeValls Bluff and for decades has been attracting diners from as far away as Little Rock and even Memphis.
What you’re having: The catfish that is fried to perfection by Stanley Young
Why it’s good: Stanley can cook anything from frog legs to chicken fried steak and make it good. The executive editor of Southern Living recently declared this to be the best catfish in America.
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