Holcomb’s opened their first location in nearby White Plains in 1971. Still open, the original is as famous for its sawdust dining room floor as it is for its Brunswick stew. People drive from miles around to buy the stuff by the gallon! This location, opened in 1981, is a bit better known, just because Greensboro is a bigger town than White Plains, and it seems appropriate that it’s located in an old gas station. George Dyar writes: Amoco Oil built this station in the early 1960s. John Bledsoe was the manager. 2 bay filing station and changed/repaired many logging and farm tires. Used them many times.
I rarely endorse businesses on any of my websites, but some places are so extraordinary they deserve a mention. One such place is the unlikely St. Simons landmark, Southern Soul Barbeque. You might have read about it in Garden & Gun, Southern Living, or The New York Times, or seen it on the Travel Channel, or the popular Food Network show, Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives. But none of those outlets can compare to a visit in the flesh. Owners Griffin Bufkin and Harrison Sapp transformed this 1940s gas station into a mecca for barbeque and soul food lovers and their fans are legion. There’s a great beer selection and a good variety of sauces for different tastes. (I prefer the mustard/vinegar-based Carolina style sauces, none of the sweet stuff for me).
Everyone probably has his own favorite dish. Mine is the first meal I ever ate here. The pulled pork with mac & cheese and collard greens was truly heaven on a plate. The white bread was a fitting accompaniment to this pinnacle of Southern cuisine.
You know it’s going to be good when the employees who work in the heat and smoke all day still have smiles on their faces.
Books like the Southern Foodways Alliance’s classic series, Cornbread Nation, take up shelf space with modern culinary classics ranging from The Whole Hog Cookbook and Southern Belly to Pickles, Pigs & Whiskey and Smoke and Pickles.
Opened in 1943 by Maurice Zell, the Twin Oaks Drive-In is the oldest restaurant in Brunswick. The service is some of the friendliest you’ll find anywhere. Whether it’s your first visit or you’re a regular the staff knows by name, you’ll be treated the same. You can learn more about their history in this Georgia Times-Union profile. Though it’s changed owners over the years, it remains as popular today as it ever was. Check out their menu here.
Brinson’s is a well-loved institution in Jenkins County. Located south of Millen on West Old Savannah Road, you’ll know it’s open if there’s a plume of smoke pouring from the pits behind the simple cinder block building and a parking lot full of pickup trucks. Unless you have a big appetite, order the small barbeque plate. I ordered the regular and it was enough food for two people. (They also have a large plate). The sauce is a bit tangier than you’ll find further south in Georgia, but it was very good. And the Brunswick stew was served over rice, not something often seen in restaurants. Three slices of Sunbeam bread, a generous helping of potato salad, and Brinson’s sweet tea complete this classic Southern meal. Brinson’s actual address, in case you need to put it in your GPS: 3924 West Old Savannah Road, Millen, Georgia 30442. Their telephone number is (478) 982-4570.
This 70s landmark was once one of the most popular restaurants in Valdosta. Today, just an empty building and this old sign remain. I’ve been told that Burt Reynolds used to pass through Valdosta on occasion and always picked up a pile of barbeque at C. H. Mitchell’s when he was there. Don’t know if that’s true, or just urban legend, but I like it.
In preparation for an upcoming documentary, I’ve been reviewing my archive of over 2,000 photographs made on various film cameras before I made the switch to digital in 2007. I’m sharing some of them here and hope they are of interest. Amazingly, most of these structures are gone now and remind me why I do what I do. The image above, of a wintry landscape adorned with a crude pioneer cabin with a fieldstone chimney, was among my first favorites. I had 8x10s printed and looked at them with a sense of awe at the loss that was accelerating around me. As with many of the places I shoot, I’ve wished many times that I’d returned to this quaint little cabin for more photographs. I’m not quite sure when it was demolished but it was gone before 2010. Such stories of loss motivate me to photograph nearly everything I can that I believe to be of cultural or historical value and I hope my work inspires others to pick up their cameras and do the same in their neck of the woods.
Hunter’s was a local favorite and welcome stop for travelers along Highway 32 for years. They even had parking for semi-trucks. Their goat sandwich, with chips & Coca-Cola was my favorite. Though Hunter’s closed not too long after this photo was made, it’s legendary barbeque sauce has been resurrected by the Hutto family, who now operate the location as Hutto’s Barbeque. It’s just as good!
I can’t count how many times I passed this store traveling between Fitzgerald and Tifton over the years, though I honestly don’t remember it ever being open. It was razed in early 2012. (I’m not sure of the spelling of the owner’s name, but thanks to Dale Bledsoe for the information.)
This Folk Victorian, long a landmark in the area, was demolished before 2007. Thanks to a recent (2016) message from Daphne Griffin, I now know a bit more about the place: My father grew up in that house beginning around 1941. His name is Charlie Jesse Griffin, known as C.J. He grew up there with his mother, Osteen Roberts Griffin, his grandfather, Charlie Roberts, and his three brothers, Denzil, Herman, and Therman Griffin. My grandmother Osteen lived there until around 1960. The house was owned by Otto Griner at the time they lived there.
Cheri Smith Paradise, whose husband’s family owns this property and the adjoining site of the former Bacon’s Motel writes: This building was a store that sold bbq and beer. In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s it was called the Plains Country Club.
Update: As of 2016, this structure is no longer standing.
