SEC college towns ...

They actually closed the Oxford Steak Company and moved it north of town and renamed it to something like 'Palmer Adams' it's next door to Oxford Floral just across North Lamar from the Downtown Inn.

 

I haven't been back there in a while, but the last time I was in the alley -- which was in the spring -- it was still there.

 

If you're in Knoxville and you don't hit Ye Old Steak House ... you're beyond foolish.

Passy's Places, mostly visited when I was a large man:
Tennessee: See above, though Calhoun's pretzels are good.
Florida: Nada. Grandy's, the chain, at least has good biscuits.
Vanderbilt: Old Spaghetti Factory and a satay grill called "Rumba". Personal reasons.
Georgia: Weaver D's mac-and-cheese
Kentucky: Country Fried Ho at Tolly-Ho.
Alabama: NOT the Hong Kong Super Buffet
Auburn: Grilled Tenders at Buffalo Connection work for me.
LSU: Some place Guilbeau recommended. Hell if I know what it was.
Miss State: Halftime ice cream, strawberry?
Arkansas: I guess Doe's, though I saw a fellow beat writer gnaw on a bone there and it ruined the whole experience forever. I mean, seriously. Dude was gnawing like a friggin mountain lion.
Ole Miss: I always stay in Tupelo. Cool italian resty next to the AmeriHost, room 201. That's me.
USC: Never been.

 

The restaurant in Tupelo is Vanelli's. Pretty good joint, although Mrs. tbf doesn't like it. On the weekends, they normally have a comedian.

 

Well, there is a Mellow Mushroom there. Eat there every time I'm in town -- although my favorite waitress quit.

 

Dreamland in Tuscaloosa is TOP notch.

Somewhere near Knoxville, and maybe it's a chain around there, I don't know.. is a place called Logan's. Best piece of chicken I ever ate. Grilled, with big, thick sear marks, with some sort of light parmesean sauce over a bed of rice... good lord, it was tasty.

I've been to Athens the most, but damned if I know where I've eaten there. Some Italian place downtown has great calzone.

 

All that Dreamland talk made me remember one place that is pretty good in Spurrier's backyard: California Dreaming

The Knob Hill Chicken is the best!

http://www.newyorkprime.com/califdreaming/cd-columbia/cdcola-intro.html

 

that would be depalma's

 

Peanut shells on the floor?

http://www.logansroadhouse.com/

 

You can find some stuff there, but it all tastes like Chicken.

 

Mellow Mushroom makes a helluva calzone, too.

 

for some reason i always throw up mellow mushroom's calzone

also, i gathered it's depalma's because he said an italian place -- mellow mushroom is more of a pizza joint, where depalma's is an italian place. although i like depalma's pizza a lot more