My views of the South were limited at best (no pun intended) when I was younger.
But when a cousin married a woman from Alabama, right around the time that I began to work with a proud Southern man, my views about the South were quickly replaced with my lunches and family gatherings boasting with Southern mainstays.
Gritts, thick smoked bacon, greens, and well, things that you only saw on TV but weren't readily available in my suburban community, were different. flavorful. delectable.
Even today, southern or "soul food" restaurants are few and far in Los Angeles; and none, from what I have been told, compare to the home-cooking and nouveau-fusion upscale Southern cuisine that is emerging in the most misunderstood parts of the U.S.
The Lee Brothers, the James Beard Award-winning food and travel writers, have embarked on a Southern road trip starting with their hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, to do just that: document the food, culture and history of the South.
Their new show "Southern Uncovered with the Lee Bros," is premiering on Ovation TV this Sunday, June 14; and Matt Lee, one half of the Lee Bros, shared his excitement at the recent kick-off reception at the award-winning restaurant Border Grill.
Proudly Southern, Matt told me that "Southern Uncovered with the Lee Bros" would not only honor the long-standing Southern food traditions, but respect the people of these communities, at least; at most, entice me and other viewers of the show to visit the South.
Because, truly, "the South is beautiful," he told me.
I can't wait to find that out.
Ana Lydia
