Cindy and I flew to Memphis so I could drive over to DeValls Bluff, Arkansas, to meet with Robert Craig, owner of the spectacular Craig's Barbecue. I'll be doing a presentation on the place at the Southern Foodways Alliance symposium this fall. We hadn't been back to Craig's since we left Arkansas many years ago. It's still just as wonderful and funky as ever. Here's Robert at home. The sauce recipe is a family secret.

Spent the rest of our time in Memphis. Went to a Redbirds game. Drinks at the Peabody and the Madison. Had some spectacular fried chicken At Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken. Take a look.

Two piece dark and a side of fried green tomatoes. Spicy and crisp on the outside, moist and delicious on the inside. Saveur magazine tried to copy the recipe. It has to be worth trying to duplicate.

John Dufresne