Southern Living

I recently had a night out with my in-laws and we went to Tupelo Honey Cafe. THC is supposed to be THE new Southern restaurant, a blend of down-home cooking and class. I was pretty excited but was quickly disappointed when I perused the menu online.

"Grateful Dead Black Bean Burger"

• A Veggie burger named for hippies?

"Southern Fried Chicken Saltimbocca with Country Ham and Mushroom Marsala"

• The greatest insult. "Fried Chicken" isn't on the menu but this is.

"Seasoned Salsa Verde Black-Eyed Peas and Goat Cheese Grits topped with two over medium eggs, two maple peppered bacon strips, cheddar cheese and Sunshot Salsa (substitute one soysage for bacon)"

• Soysage? Goat Cheese?

This is not the South. A Southern menu has fried chicken, chicken fried steak, a regular burger, plain, mayo-based cole slaw, and cheese from a cow. Tupelo Honey Cafe is a hipster's version of what it takes to make the South palatable, not a Southern restaurant.

Currently on Southern Living's recipe section of the website, they have steak recipes posted. The top recipe is coffee rubbed skirt steak.The second recipe is seared steak with potato-artichoke heart hash. I don't need to continue. You know what's a good steak recipe? Steak. You know what goes well with it? Potatoes, baked or fried. No artichoke, no need for you to rub coffee on it. I also see corn recipes on this site. You know what kinds of corn are good? On the cob, off the cob, and in a pudding.

What's happened to my South? Sweet tea, fried anything, and sports (preferably football.)