Thursday, November 8, 2007

Must eat meat: L&M Salumeria, Oxford, Mississippi

Indulge me while I backtrack to Oxford, Miss., where I savored this fine plate a couple of short weeks ago.

Dan Latham at L&M Salumeria learned to cure from the main man, Aramandino Batali, when he worked with Mario in NYC. He's got the gift.

And when he was having trouble sourcing the right kind of pork, he decided to start his own operation: Pancetta Ranch.

This restaurant is definitely on the top of my list of reasons to make the pilgrimage to William Faulkner's hometown. Among the many others: City Grocery (where you can give humanitarian chef John Currence a high five from me), Ajax Diner -- loved that smoked catfish spread! -- Taylor Grocery (home of the world's greatest catfish and hush puppies), a tailgating party during football season in the Grove (look for Dave Darnell's tent and tell him I sent you), Square Books (the coolest bookstore in the universe) and Bottletree Bakery. There's much more, but half the fun is discovering a place on your own, right?

3 comments:

Gregg said...

So jealous...is L&M still having lease issues (or at least have the rumors ended)?

I would like Dan to consult on a butcher shop in Memphis. Think he'd be willing to help out with a business plan?

Gregg

charlestonguy said...

They are beginning construction on the new building where L&M's is located. I haven't heard anything recently, but the developers (who are local) want to temporarily displace L&M's somewhere else and then move them back into their new development.

Leslie, did you hear anything about Ravine, the new farm-to-table restaurant in the Oxford countryside?

Leslie Kelly said...

I sure didn't hear about Ravine! I'll put it on my list for next time, though.