Hello.
We at the Unincorporated have a had an incredible culinary weekend. We had the opportunity to eat at two restaurants, both way off the beaten path, and both great for totally different reasons.
It started Friday evening with music and food at Bowmantown Music Barn. Now, the music barn is something of a misnomer, as it is a ramshackle building made of scraps of aluminum, plywood, and flea market finds. They have music and dinner there every Friday night, and usually have a couple of bluegrass bands on the schedule, plus the house band. Before words on the food itself, a word on the music. It never ceases to amaze how many talented musicians there are out there. Both the bands playing that night were good bluegrass bands, but the house band was unreal; it was a family where the dad played bass, the two older sons played guitar and mandolin, and the youngest, about twelve, played banjo. And boy did he play. Perhaps the most amazing musician we have seen in a long time, and maybe the best banjo player ever that we've seen perform live.
Now, about the food. Standard Appalachian fare: beans, cornbread, tea. But as a meat option they had "streaked meat". What is streaked meat you ask? Well, you start with
fatback. Bread it. Deep fry it. Yeah, we know. Not healthy, but authentic.
Then Saturday we went out the "real" boonies to CJ Papadops. This restaurant is run by a Grecian woman and her hillybilly husband since 1983. Everything was cooked to order, and everything was excellent. A slow paced, awesome meal.
Then Sunday night we watched Milk back at Unincorporated headquarters. This movie left us feeling... unmoved. Also disappointing was minimal mention of the
Twinkie defense employed by Harvey Milk's murderer. That would have put the fitting cap on a very food-centric weekend.
However, it did inspire an epicurian Punk' N Center Ten.
1 Breakfast In Bed:Dusty Springfield
Let's get started with the most important meal of the day off the unbelievable Dusty in Memphis.
2 Hey Chicken:Loose Fur
Jeff Tweedy's other band, filled with Power Rangers.
3 Vega-Tables:Brian Wilson
Have you seen Mr. Wilson lately? He don't look so good.
4 Lunch:Shivaree
Amazingly this album still sounds great 10 years later.
5 C Food:Charles Hamilton
Chuck has an old school flow we can all get behind.
6 No Wedding Cake:Fol Chen
Newish band, included here because, well the song has cake in the title.
7 Mayonaise Brain:Bobby Bare Jr.
Hobbitish looking man, creating some awesome country pop.
8 Digsy's Dinner:Oasis
Ahh, the insular time that was the Ninties.
9 Peanut Vendor:Pérez Prado
The king of the mambo.
10 Dinner for Two:Deerhoof
Weird, awesome, pop. Deerhoof.
11 The Food (Ft. Kanye West):Common
We can't get away from Mr. West. Common's all right.
12 A Cookie As Big As My Head:Lunch Money
Kids' song, bringing our mix to a close with dessert. Features the line, "By the way my cookie policy is Chocolate Chip only."
Enjoy.
1That's That:Doom
