Feets!

Today was really supposed to be just a rap-up of New Orleans and positioning ourselves close to Memphis so we could get there within a few hours the next day--but that's not how it ended. This seems like an inauspicious beginning to a post, but have no fear, it just ended with a surprise!

We slept in for a bit, not hitting the pavement until around 10:30. I contemplated beignets for breakfast again but instead opted for a really early lunch at Johnny's Po Boys. We had several recommendations for Johnny's as the best in town for the po' boy, specifically, the roast beef. That's what I ordered while Tim ordered the shrimp.

The roast beef was dunked in some type of au jus which soaked into the light and airy french bread--delicious, even if we ate it as the first meal of the day; I can't even write that I ate it for breakfast. : )

After breakfast we headed to the National World War II museum. This was a very well-organized, interesting museum that covered mostly D-day on the European and Asian front. I'm not a history buff, but I was pleasantly surprised. From there, we visited the area affected by Katrina, the Lower 9th Ward. Tim found a kind of self-guided tour online that took us right down to where the old levy breached. Five years later and it was still in bad shape. Many houses were abandoned, while others had been rehabbed or rebuilt. There was evidence of "L9 Make It Right," all over the place (see pics to the right). On that note, we left New Orleans.

The plan was to get right outside of Memphis so that we could regroup and make a quick plan for things to see and do. We arrived in Jackson, Mississippi, around dinner-time. The guide book and many reviews took us to a spot in Jackson that was a must try. On the outside, Walker's Drive-In seemed like a typical diner/drive-in spot; the inside was gussied up. The food? Well the food was to die for--probably the best place we'd eaten.

We started with BBQ oysters and Walker's take on delta tamales. The oysters were plump and juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside. The tamales were one-of-a-kind, covered with a corn cream with a hint of cilantro and lime--not to be missed.

My entree was a Panko-crusted sea bass topped with a jicama slaw with a light cream sauce with some flavoring that I couldn't quite identify but was quite tasty. This sat on a bed of cheese grits--yum! Tim had pan-seared scallops on a green pea and asparagus risotto also with a good sauce.

We didn't save room for dessert.

Now for the surprise. Tim sat facing the door. As we were engaged in conversation, Tim stopped mid-sentence, dropped his jaw in stunned silence, then uttered under his breath, "No way." He pointed to the door, and I turned to look. There stood Steve Bullock, Tim's Dad's cousin who lives in Little Rock, Arkansas. Mind you, we were hundreds of miles from home, in Jackson, Mississippi, and we ran into Steve, who lives in Little Rock. It was so unexpected! Steve was in a little town about 45 minutes from Jackson at a conference. With nothing more than perfect timing, we ended up in the same restaurant in Jackson.The conversation consisted of lots of smiles, laughs, and hugs. After thinking today's post would be quite uneventful, we got some great material in Jackson! We drove on to Grenada, Mississippi, just a couple of hours from Memphis where we'll get a good night's sleep before we visit the birthplace of the blues.

Oh, why the title? When Tim was little, he couldn't quite pronounce Steve correctly, and it came out "Feets!"