Browsing: Food & Dining

Explore the foodie paradise found in Mississippi. Tasty recipes, where to dine, and more.

Cooler weather has finally made its way to Mississippi, and that means it’s time to pull out the soup pot!

After months of hot weather, there’s something especially nice about a Sunday afternoon with a pot of homemade soup simmering on the stove. Add a skillet of cornbread, and supper is pretty much taken care of.

There comes a point every fall when supper starts sounding different.

All summer long, we want something light, something quick and preferably something that does not require turning the oven on. Then October arrives, the temperature finally drops a little, and suddenly a bubbling cast-iron skillet coming out of the oven sounds just about perfect.

In Mississippi, food is more than a necessity—it’s culture, memory, and connection all rolled into one. Whether it’s a family gathered around the Sunday dinner table, neighbors sharing a plate of fried catfish, or college students swapping stories over a late-night po-boy, our meals carry meaning. Few restaurants capture that spirit better than Oby’s, a Mississippi-grown favorite with a story that stretches from Pearl Harbor to Starkville.

The Enid Depot in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, hasn’t always been an award-winning steak house. Locals called it the “depot,” and it served as a vital community general store from 1910 through 1975 before transitioning into an acclaimed farm-to-table steakhouse. It is still located right across from the old railroad tracks, which were the lifeblood of the town, making way for a bustling 20th-century cotton-shipping hub.

Nestled in the historic Cotton Row in Cleveland, MS, is an award-winning wood-fired restaurant, Leña Pizza + Bagels. Founded in 2023 by world-renowned chef Marisol Doyle and her husband, Rory, Leña is widely recognized for its exceptional wood-fired pizzas and was named one of the Top 22 Pizzerias in the United States by the New York Times and has been listed as a top pizzeria in the South and the U.S. by 50 Top Pizza and Southern Living. But Marisol began her culinary journey in Cleveland with fresh bagels.

People looking to try West African cuisine no longer have to leave the Pine Belt.

Jamba Jollof opened its first brick-and-mortar location in downtown Hattiesburg on Feb. 28 after previously operating as a home-based business. Following the closure of Afrishoppi Kitchen’s dine-in restaurant, Jamba Jollof is now Mississippi’s only brick-and-mortar West African restaurant.