Arkansas ambassadors
In Wednesday’s column, I wrote about Lake Village’s Rhoda Ad- ams, the Arkansas tamale queen who died in August at age 85. The first three restaurants inducted into the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame in 2017 were Black-owned establishments. Rhoda’s Famous Hot Tamales was joined in that inaugural class by Jones Bar-B-Q-Diner of Marianna and Lassis Inn of Little Rock.
What I didn’t have room to note is that people such as Adams, James Harold Jones of Marianna and Elihue Washington Jr. of Little Rock are among our state’s most important ambassadors. Folks will travel a long way for good tamales, barbecue and fried fish. Through not only their cooking but also their hospitality, people like this play as large a role in Arkansas tourism as the millions of dollars spent advertising the state.
As we celebrate our food heritage, let’s never forget that it attracts tourists. Along with the state’s natural beauty and outdoor recreational opportunities, the cooking and smiling faces are among Arkansas’ strongest attributes.
Consider this feature story on Rhoda’s that once ran in The Clarion-Ledger in Mississippi.
Chris Joyner wrote: “The lunch rush is over and it’s quiet inside Rhoda’s Famous Hot Tamales, but the air is steamy and filled with the rich smell of cumin and chili powder. At one of the Formica-topped tables, Rhoda Adams takes a break to reflect on making what some believe to be the best example of one of the Delta’s most curious culinary treats. She said she was not sold on the idea of getting into the hot tamale business at first.”
Adams told the reporter from Jackson: “My husband’s auntie asked me about us doing it, but I never wanted to do any hot tamales. We started doing about 25 dozen a day. I kind of liked it, but I didn’t like it without a machine.”
Her husband bought her the machine. Adams was the mother of 15 children, only 11 of whom survived to adulthood. Of her almost 60 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, she said: “Some of them I ain’t never seen.”
Joyner wrote: “Her tamale family is many times larger. Lovers of the meat and cornmeal treats travel from far and wide to find their holy grail served on a Styrofoam plate for a buck apiece. How far would someone come for Rhoda’s famous hot tamales?
“‘Man, what are you talking about?’ she said with mock gall. ‘Oklahoma, New York, Florida. Honest to God. And I have people here every day from Little Rock.’”
She told the reporter that three private planes came down the same day from Little Rock so a group of executives could eat. Now that’s a tourist attraction.
I also think about the national outpouring of concern (and money) that came in February 2021 when part of Jones at Marianna burned. My heart sank that Sunday morning when I opened a text message from Kim Williams. She’s a talented travel writer. Her father, the mayor of Marianna at the time, had told her about the fire.
“Jones BBQ engulfed in flames,” the text read. “Mr. Harold safe.”
I envisioned the type of fire that destroyed Cotham’s Mercantile at Scott in May 2017. The restaurant known for its fried catfish and giant burgers was never rebuilt. I feared the same fate would befall Jones, the first Arkansas restaurant to receive a James Beard Award.
I posted the news on social media, and hundreds of people shared the post. The next message from Williams came 42 minutes after the first one. She wrote: “Just talked to a friend who went over there. Might just be in the back. My dad is leaving church and headed there. The community will make him rebuild. I’ll start an online fundraiser if necessary.”
A text arrived from Mimi San Pedro of Little Rock’s Venture Center, whose staff I had taken on a barbecue pilgrimage just before the start of the pandemic in 2020. She offered to set up an online account. Within hours, that account was activated. Word about the fire spread across the country, and money flowed in. When the account was closed a week later, it contained $67,000.
A story about the fire even made The New York Times. The mayor told the Times: “That little place has brought a lot of people to this small town. I’ve met people from all over the world down there.”
James Harold Jones, 76 at the time, vowed to rebuild quickly. He said: “I’m going to come back with another building. I’ve been in this over 60 years. I started when I was 14.”
He did just that. The Beard Foundation’s America’s Classics Award came along in 2012, and barbecue pilgrims began arriving from across the country. The restaurant usually runs out of food prior to 10 a.m. The one change the owner made was to add a guest book for visitors to sign.
“Once we got that award, we was nationwide,” Jones said.
The America’s Classics Award for Elihue Washington Jr. and Lassis Inn came in 2020. Beard Awards are to the food industry what an Oscar is to the movie business or a Pulitzer Prize is to those who write. Washington purchased Lassis in 1989 and became known for buffalo. I’m not talking about a four-legged mammal. Arkansas rivers produce three species of buffalo fish—smallmouth, bigmouth and black.
“Few recreational anglers go after buffalo, but commercial fishermen catch and sell millions annually from rivers and lakes throughout the Mississippi River Valley,” says veteran Arkansas outdoors writer Keith Sutton.
“Buffalo fish are among our nation’s most important wild food fish. Many are sold in riverside communities in Arkansas where fried buffalo ribs long have been considered special delicacies. Some buffalo make their way to fish markets in New York and Chicago.”