Food Network host Guy Fieri has traveled the country highlighting small-town restaurants that pack big flavor into favorite meals.
Did you know “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” has brought the Mayor of Flavortown to Mississippi several times. He’s visited a handful of restaurants and highlighted new spins on a sweet breakfast staple, barbecue, creole and more.
If you’re looking for a new favorite food or just want to relive your city’s 15 minutes of fame, check out these places where you can walk in Fieri’s footsteps.
The Shed Barbecue & Blues Joint, 7501 Hwy 57, Ocean Springs
The Shed had its own one-season Food Network show in 2013, following “the First Family of Mississippi Barbecue,” the Orrisons.
Southern Living named the restaurant and local blues joint one of the Top 50 barbecue places in the country, and the same team that runs the Ocean Springs eatery has won World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest at Memphis in May three times. They also recently added Roasted Oyster to the lineup.
This award-winning smoke shack was featured on the “All Kinds of BBQ” episode of DDD. Fieri called the baby back ribs “as tender as you can get.”
Memphis Barbecue Co., 709 Desoto Cove, Horn Lake
Pit master Melissa Cookson is a seven-time world barbecue champion and cookbook author. Fieri tasted the crunch burger with juke sauce and pork rinds and the baby back ribs.
Memphis Barbecue Co. was featured in the “Deep Fried All-Stars” special and the “Surf ‘N’ Turf Jackpot” episode.
Darwell’s Happiness Cafe, 127 E. First St., Long Beach
The family that runs the restaurant has had a string of eateries in Mississippi over the years.
The restaurant has been popular, including being featured on Food Network multiple times. Last year, Fieri highlighted the Shrimp Creole on a menu that includes Cajun, seafood and barbecue. On a previous episode of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives”, Fieri tried the crawfish etouffee.
Darwell Yeager III and Nettie Mechelle Yeager, the owners, shared a video on Tuesday, March 25. It offered free food to straight couples for part of the day before they closed and specifically said the LGBTQIA+ community was not included.
The issue drew national attention and led to boycotts.
Food Network does not list the restaurant among its featured places in Mississippi, but the United Kingdom site still has Darwell’s crawfish etoufee recipe online as of when this article was published.
Restaurants that have closed or changed owners
Blow Fly Inn, 1201 Washington Ave., Gulfport
Waiter, there’s a fly in my… everything. Meals at the Blow Fly Inn came garnished with a little, plastic fly. Fieri tried smoked sausage and gumbo on the “Neighborhood Favorites” episode.
The restaurant is under new ownership and rebranded in 2023. It’s now the Blow Fly Bar and Grill.
What to know: Potbelly to open four shops in Jackson area. First location set.
Louie & the Redhead Lady, Bay St. Louis
Louie & the Redhead Lady in Bay St. Louis closed since being featured on the show. The “Quirky Classics” episode featured its oysters a la Louisiana, which Fieri called “super fresh.”
Memphis Street Cafe, Hernando
Memphis Street Cafe closed since it was featured on “Unconventional Comforts.” The restaurant had banana bread French toast topped with boozy caramelized bananas and ginger and vanilla bean ice cream.
Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with Gannett/USA Today. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: See Mississippi restaurants featured on ‘Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives’
