Food & Travel...

Want to try a dinner that mixes and matches traditional Jewish fare (kosher dill pickles, challah, brisket) and Southern cooking (black eyed peas, hush puppies, fried catfish), and sometimes even combines the two (Creole matzoh ball soup)? Well, here's your chance. The Southern Foodways Alliance (SFA) is a non-profit based in Oxford, Mississippi that “documents and celebrate the diverse food cultures of the American South” from peanut farming to fried chicken to bar-b-que pits. Next week, this delicious mission leads them North, to Zingerman's Roadhouse in Ann Arbor, Michigan for a fundraiser that celebrates cooking from two cultures at once. For $75 a plate (a bargain considering Zingerman’s reputation) you’ll get a meal from the Mississippi Delta, a discussion by Marcie Cohen Ferris, SFA board president who will talk about being both Jewish and southern and how that’s affected her career, and a lecture about the blues by William Ferris accompanied by local musician Alex Johnson. To learn more about the event check out the blog post on Serious Eats or visit www.zingermansroadhouse.com. Here’s the vital information: April 7, 2008 at 7:00 PM, $75 for dinner, at 2501 Jackson Ave, Ann Arbor, MI, phone: 734-663-3663.It’s not often that the Mississippi Delta comes to Michigan, so enjoy!Photo credit: Zingerman’s Roadhouse web site.