Southern Comfort Food: What Northerners Should Look For When They Visit

Comfort food; it is a universal thing that connotates something delicious that makes you feel really happy that you are eating it. Every part of the globe, every region of every nation, and every locale has a comfort food. Some places have more than one comfort food, and that could not be more true than the Southern half of the United States. Like France, people in the South know how to eat, and they know how to indulge in comfort foods! If you visit friends or family down South any time soon, you may want to look for a modern Southern food restaurant and enjoy the comfort foods they offer. Here is what you should be looking for in authentic Southern comfort food. 

Brisket

They say really good barbecue was born in the South. That could very well be true, considering the slow-roasted, smoked, slabbed beef brisket smothered in barbecue sauce. The meat is so tender it just falls off the bone and falls apart in your mouth. Find a restaurant that cooks and smokes its own brisket so that you do not miss out on this primary Southern protein!

Fresh Cornbread

Cornbread has been a staple of the South since the first plantation was built. True cornbread, and not that stuff out of a box mix, has bits of real corn in it, with a light sweetness and mild density that makes it so good to sop up gravies and sauces. Some kids in the South eat it with just a glass of milk for an afterschool snack. It is almost always served as the bread part of any Southern meal. 

Grits

Grits are truly a Southern thing. No other country in the world developed grits or made grits into the Southern breakfast art form that it is. If you partake of grits for the first time, be sure to ask if they are "instant" or real grits. Real grits take at least 30 minutes to cook properly, while "instant" grits take only 5 minutes. No proper Southern restaurant should be serving instant grits, and that is why you should ask before you order them. 

Southern Pecan Pie a la Mode

It's not comfort food if it does not come with comfort dessert! Nothing is more Southern for dessert than a large slice of Southern pecan pie, with a side scoop of hand-churned vanilla ice cream and a little drizzle of caramel sauce. If you are too full from the heaping helpings of food common to any Southern meal, take your pie a la mode to go. 

For more information, contact your local modern Southern food restaurant.