The Low Down

Saturday, March 1, 2014

I have a confession

Over the past two years, I’ve fallen long and hard for my home on the Gulf Coast. I’ve been reading Pat Conroy and Flannery O’Connor, listening to the Alabama Shakes, walking barefoot, decorating with (and eating) Satsumas and Meyer Lemons by the ton, getting creative with Conecuh Sausage and Peturis Farm Red Sweet Potatoes. Heck, I even moved in to a housed designed after Tara.
 
And you know that tiny morsel of seaside? The humble royalty of the south? The infamous raw oyster?
 
I ate one.
 
Ok, six.
 
I went to my late Pawpaw’s favorite seafood joint, Sea ‘N’ Suds. (Pawpaw Dub, the one who once convinced an entire kitchen staff that he was the Cajun Cook.) 
 
Granny Grace, Pawpaw Dub, Me, Mom
 
 
I was captivated by memories of gumbo, flounder and crab claws. I smiled at the childhood memory of his throaty laugh, the time he showed me how to eat an oyster and I squinched my nose. I had to give in.
 
And? I loved them. Should I change the name of the blog?
 
I had a second encounter with the little boogers on Valentine’s Day at Tin Top restaurant in Bon Secour. They tasted like they’d brought them in from the bayou out back. Fresh and heavenly. If you are a raw oyster virgin, I recommend you go there if you plan to try them around here.
 
Speaking of Valentine’s Day, have you seen this gem on Garden & Gun? I submitted my own Grandparents’ photo (#24) and ended up spending hours on the 14th reading the little blurbs and shedding tears, some for my late Gran and others for the lasting love stories.
 
Cheers to Oysters! Cheers to Love! Cheers to this beloved South!