anthony: some time ago something crawled, or slithered, or grew like a fungus. something that started small, got bigger, lurched like a swamp thing out of the mud and moist earth and humid nights of the delta. then, it took over the world. so next time some smart ass foreigner, horrified by our latest ham-fisted foreign policy blunder wonders out loud, what good is america? well, you can always pipe up that the blues, rock n roll, r&b, and soul all came out of this place one state mississippi. i took a walk through this beautiful world felt the cool rain on my shoulder found something good in this beautiful world i felt the rain getting colder sha la la la la sha la la la la la sha la la la la sha la la la la la la geno: right now we re in the middle of downtown jackson. farish street. anthony: it is a street with a lot of history. what did it used to be like back in the day? geno: the street was packed with folks. folks all over, they
the salad thing is famous. hand-tossed in the same wooden bowl for decades. the hot tamales, same as they ever was. julia reed: and doe s tamales are just incredible because they re made with the steak drippings and stuff that you re getting ready to see, so it anthony: oh yeah. oh really. julia reed: greatly enhances the flavor. oh my god. john currence: i could eat em till i was sick. anthony: fries done in cast-iron pan on the stovetop. the famous shrimp. steaks on an old rollout broiler. drippings all over the top. julia reed: and, you know, you re not gonna get skinny or healthy eating the hot tamales and fried shrimp and steak at doe s. there s no question about it. anthony: oh that s good. happy. it s the grease that makes it. uh-huh. man, that s good. and you re right about those shrimp, they are delicious. julia reed: the shrimp? anthony: yeah. julia reed: oh yeah. anthony: is there a dessert that i should be saving room for? julia reed: are you ki
meet you. julia reed: florence is in charge of the salad bowl and has been for this is florence is doe senior s sister-in-law. uh, when did y all open up for us? 1930? florence signa: 1941. julia reed: 41. close enough. anthony: like a lot of folks around here, dominick big doe signa got his start selling hot tamales to go. in the beginning, the place catered to the black community. but after word got out how good the food was, white people started coming. which led to a kind of weird accommodation to the segregation of the day. blacks came in the front, white people snuck in the back. the menu expanded with the clientele. what human qualities are unique or marked in the native of mississippi? julia reed: i cannot address mississippi cause like i said, the delta is a whole nother planet. anthony: wow. okay, better question then. how does the lifelong delta resident differ from the other julia reed: you had to be a little crazy to wanna come in the first place,
new orleans to come to mississippi. and opened first one, then many more restaurants and businesses in the town of oxford. john currence: i ve stayed busy. anthony: and this is doe s eat place in greenville. julia reed: this is the great florence signa. anthony: oh, it s so good to meet you. julia reed: florence is in charge of the salad bowl and has been for this is florence is doe senior s sister-in-law. uh, when did y all open up for us? 1930? florence signa: 1941. julia reed: 41. close enough. anthony: like a lot of folks around here, dominick big doe signa got his start selling hot tamales to go. in the beginning, the place catered to the black community. but after word got out how good the food was, white people started coming. which led to a kind of weird accommodation to the segregation of the day. blacks came in the front, white people snuck in the back. the menu expanded with the clientele. what human qualities are unique or marked in the native of miss
the system, such as it is, well, crazy. you eat right here in the kitchen. and the division of labor, the flow of work, well, i gave up trying to figure it out five minutes in and just figured i ll get loaded and eat all this delicious food. the salad thing is famous. hand-tossed in the same wooden bowl for decades. the hot tamales, same as they ever was. julia reed: and doe s tamales are just incredible because they re made with the steak drippings and stuff that you re getting ready to see, so it anthony: oh yeah. oh really. julia reed: greatly enhances the flavor. oh my god. john currence: i could eat em till i was sick. anthony: fries done in cast-iron pan on the stovetop. the famous shrimp. steaks on an old rollout broiler. drippings all over the top. julia reed: and, you know, you re not gonna get skinny or healthy eating the hot tamales and fried shrimp and steak at doe s. there s no question about it. anthony: oh that s good. happy. it s the grease that makes