Okra (Fayetteville, Tn)

The Town Square
 
If you visit a small town, most of the time you'll find one common denominator. A courthouse and square right at its heart that is not only historic and beautiful but is (or was) often the center of the towns universe. Butchers, bakeries, mercantile, and other various and sundry businesses lined the square and was where locals would do their shopping. Often the movie theatre is there as well. So common is this setting that Universal Studios has a permanent set dedicated to the “Archetypical American” town. The set has been seen in such movies as To Kill a Mockingbird and Back to the Future and TV shows like Leave it to Beaver and Night Rider.

Sadly, the advent of mega malls and grocery stores saw a lot of these businesses surrounding the courthouse fail. Due to the proximity of the courts they are quite often, sadly taken over by law firms. Some towns that haven't suffered from recessions still have a variety of merchants offering antiques, books and souvenirs. And rest assured, there will be restaurants.
 
Such is the case with Fayetteville, Tn. A wonderful courthouse square is surrounded by some of the afore mentioned establishments. That's where you'll find Okra Restaurant. The latest offering from artist Toby Penney and her husband Chef Michael Bradley. Local restaurant veterans, one time operators of the famous Mrs. Mary Bobo's in nearby Lynchburg and owners of Amazing Gracie’s BBQ.

Combining a love of art and food Okra serves as restaurant and art gallery. Not to mention the upstairs apartment serves as living quarters and studio.

You have your choice of ordering off the menu or the white board. Toby advised me that the only thing that comes in a can is the ketchup refill. Other than that, everything is made from scratch. So lets get a look.

Both Mrs. Sippi and Madame Butterfly opted for Fried Catfish Blue Plate Specials with a variety of sides. I ordered off the menu.

Breaded Catfish: Nothing earth shattering here. It was straight up, cornmeal breaded on the outside and flaky yet creamy inside. It was just solid. Fried catfish 101
Fried Okra: As good as it gets. Not the crusty balls of slime you get in some places but lightly battered, fresh tasting and just cooked. Mrs. Sippi hailed it as some of the best.
Mac n Cheese: Your typical old school creamy mac n cheese executed very well. As I said to Toby, mac n cheese doesn't have to have 4 cheeses I've never heard of to be good. It just has to be good.
Pinto Beans: These are great. Nice rich gravy with earthy beans. Sadly, there was no pepper sauce on the table to kick them up a notch. Not that the NEEDED it.
Turnip Greens: A nice example that had a touch of sweetness followed with a peppery finish. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Squash: Mrs. Sippi had mixed emotions about this. She was disappointed in that it wasn't what she thought she was getting when she ordered it. That said, it was still fantastic.

'Mento Cristo: This play on the famous Monte Cristo (which is a fancy way of saying grilled ham and cheese sandwich) is made with Pimento Cheese rather than cheddar. The sour dough was basically made French toast style, complete with cinnamon sugar which I didn't care for (nor did the lady sitting at the table next to us) and easily dusted off. This sandwich however after the fine tuning was an absolute home run. The lady beside me agreed.
Fresh Cut Fries: Another item that needed some fine tuning in my mind. They needed to be more well done. As I said, that's just a personal preference. Outside of that, these are fantastic. Great potato taste and seasoned with Fleur de Sel which was a very nice touch. Fries like this would easily fetch north of $10 at a fancy steak house if you simply named them "Pomme Frites."

Apple Bread Pudding: There was a significant difference of opinion here. While the other two thought it was only okay, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Much like Mrs. Sippi and the squash, this wasn't exactly as I expected but decided I liked it for what it was not for what it wasn't. Most notably, I was hoping for a nice apple cinnamon flavour. The caramel sauce on top was really nice but not (in a good way) over the top rich. It came with a nice fluffy whipped cream.

So there you have it folks, some terrific southern fare in a lovely little town.

You can find Okra at 113 Main Ave. S. in Fayetteville, Tn.

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You can also find them on the web and facebook.


Well that's all for now folks, see ya next time in the food court.