Barbecue, fish, tamales land prestigious honor
The inaugural Arkansas Food Hall of Fame induction ceremony, held Feb. 28 at Ron Robinson Theater, had all the drama and anticipation of the 2017 Academy Awards ceremony, but without any goofs.
Beginning last fall, the Department of Arkansas Heritage accepted nominations from the public for potential inductees. Then a 12-member committee took on the onerous task of narrowing the list of 300 down to three legendary Arkansas restaurants to include in the first year’s class: Jones Bar-B-Q Diner of Marianna, Lassis Inn of Little Rock, noted for its fried fish, and Rhoda’s Famous Hot Tamales of Lake Village.
Elihue Washington and his wife, Merida, accepted for Lassis; Rhoda Adams accepted for her restaurant; and Betty Jones, wife of Jones BarB-Q proprietor James Jones, accepted for the famed eatery the family has operated for some 150 years.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Department of Arkansas Heritage Director Stacy Hurst handed out the awards. Rex Nelson provided thorough and often mouth-watering descriptions of the restaurants’ fare. None of the inductees provide fancy dining atmospheres — they’re mere shacks, actually — but their specialties are considered major attractions in the Natural State.
“[Tourists] will go back and talk about our museums, they’ll go back and talk about our rivers and our outdoor life, but they will also go back and talk about our fried pies, our barbecue. And if there’s anything that we’ve learned, it’s that we can compete with other states when it comes to food,” the governor said. Other hall of fame inductees were Paul Bash, Ed Moore, Louis Petit and Denis Seyer, doing business as Continental Cuisine partnership, Proprietor of the Year; the Cave City Watermelon Festival in Sharp County as best food-theme event; and Grotto Wood-Fired Grill and Wine Cave in Eureka Springs with the People’s Choice award.
Shane Henderson, executive chef of Ben E. Keith Foods Mid-South, took to the task of feeding the nominees, foodies and guests. A buffet included whoopie pies, oatmeal creme pies, deviled eggs with smoked trout, sweet potato biscuits with braised short ribs, ham and greens arancini, duck terrine and chicken salad, and a variety of cheeses by Kent Walker.