Jackson Free Press

When most people bust out statistics like "the average American eats more than 31 pounds of cheese each year"—give or take a few pounds, depending on your source and the year—they are generally mourning the state of nutrition in this country and hoping to warn consumers of the havoc they are wreaking upon their bodies with their poor diets. Lunch Lady concedes the point, but she is not a pot to call the kettle black, and is therefore not here to do that to you.

What she is here to do is help you figure out how best to allot those 31 pounds per year. That is, are you going to squander them on lackluster American slices, congealed into grilled-cheese sandwiches you eat while watching home-makeover shows? Or would you prefer eating your 31 pounds (a bit at a time perhaps) out in the public eye, where you'll find them classily arrayed in multiple varieties on cheese plates at Julep, encrusted over a fresh catch at Walker's or smothering some chicken and pasta at Mansell's? Lunch Lady thinks the options speak for themselves.

Lunch Buddy, Lunch Lady's sidekick and frequent, well, lunch buddy, told her a few weeks ago that he could breeze through major life decisions with no problem. Make major career decisions? Done. Move into a new place? A breeze. Start or end a relationship? Snap decision. But if they ever change the specials at his favorite lunch spot, he thinks it would destroy him. There'd be no recovering. Does this sound like you? Do you fear change? Are you always mashed-potato Mondays and sushi Saturdays? Or do you like variety and something new every day, and possibly at every meal? Let us know—this column is about you and about Jackson, and Lunch Lady needs your input.

What makes Jackson such good fodder for an about-town foodie column? Glad you asked. The mix of big-city variety and quality, with small-town southern charm and familiarity makes for an ideal restaurant-going atmosphere. Even at the fanciest restaurant in town, the chef is likely to know you, or at least your grandmother or someone you went to high school with. The other diners are likely to be people you see other places—at work, at church, in your neighborhood or at the market. Even if you don't already know the people around you, you can learn a lot about them by eating with them. Observing them as they order, listening to them talk while they eat and gauging their reactions to their food (and your food) all make for a fun anthropological study. Or, you know, a good meal.

This familiarity doesn't detract from the quality or variety that we get from our Jackson restaurants—in fact, it usually complements it perfectly, offsetting pretension and inducing comfort. Steve, of Steve's Downtown Deli, brought Lunch Lady and Lunch Buddy a free round of his deliciously warm bread pudding simply because we knew one of his friends, a fellow restaurateur who happened to be eating there at the same time. Jeff Good, of Bravo!/Broad Street Bakery/Sal & Mookie's fame, came to Lunch Lady's dinner table one night and bestowed gift certificates upon the public-school teachers at the table, just to thank them for doing their jobs.

This kind of thing doesn't happen everywhere. People in Jackson know other people in their communities, and they care about them. This fact shows up in ways as seemingly inconsequential as seasoning decisions, flatware choices and menu design.

The glorious thing about food is that it is a necessary indulgence. We can live without diamonds, alcohol and golf clubs (well, some of us can), but we all need food. And unlike other necessities, like water or sleep, we can jazz it up. The opportunities for variety and individualization are endless, and Jackson has plenty to experiment with. Lunch Lady isn't pushing you to break the bank by eating out at every meal, but she is suggesting you spice up your weekly routine with some strategically planned forays into the limelight.

Pick a week, perhaps the one after payday, and eat at a different downtown restaurant every day for lunch. Or pick one restaurant close to where you work, and vow to get something different each time you go. Or if that's not looking likely on your budget, pick a month, and do a different restaurant every Wednesday as a mid-week pick-me-up or every Friday to wind down at the end of the week.

Go to Steve's (125 South Congress St.) when they're serving zucchini corn bisque with cilantro and lime. Go to Mansell's (111 E. Capitol St., Suite 125) on Friday for the chicken con queso lunch special. Go to High Noon (inside the Rainbow Grocery building, 2807 Old Canton Rd.) for ginger-carrot soup and a High Noon burger. Plan in advance if you like—check the restaurants' Web sites, or call ahead and find out what you're getting yourself into. You won't be sorry.

At your next meal, think about how much of your 31 pounds of cheese you're consuming. Ask yourself: Are you eating each pound to its fullest? And in the meantime, get out and meet people and enjoy your food. The intent of this column is to help you make the most of your dining experiences—and if you have advice you'd like to share about going out in Jackson, or something special going on at your own restaurant, send it my way. Even the Lunch Lady can't eat everything herself. But she sure can try.

E-mail Margaret Cahoon at [e-mail missing].

Previous Comments

ID

84984

Comment

The Lunch Lady is making me hungry!

Author

andi

Date

2007-10-18T09:06:52-06:00

ID

84985

Comment

31 pounds! That's all! That is chump cheese! LOL!

Author

pikersam

Date

2007-10-18T16:00:50-06:00