No trip to McComb, Mississippi goes by without a visit to The Dinner Bell, one of the only round table restaurants still operating. The first of these Av and I ever went to was Walnut Hills in Vicksburg, and we were instantly smitten.
Who can pass up sitting down with twelve or fourteen people and almost an hour later likely leave with exactly that many friends? Sign me up. And we haven’t even gotten to the food yet.
Just before we’re all seated, the food is placed on the lazy susan (oh! can you see that picture of Jerry Clower on the other side of the curtain?). We have been here so many times for dinner/lunch and it is always, always fabulous.
There was rice, sweet potato casserole, green beans, limas, kidney beans, cabbage, rutabagas, squash, chicken and dumplins, fried eggplant, peas, rolls, fried chicken…maybe a half dozen other dishes. Oh that chicken is so good. The fried eggplant recipe is a secret — so much so that they don’t include it in the restaurant’s own spiral-bound cookbook.
Banana pudding for dessert:
I can go on and on about what a special opportunity it is to have…well, delicious fellowship with others, but here’s a real evangelist for The Dinner Bell, from Chicago.
—
If you know of any additional (I think the Round Table in Waynesboro has closed, and the Mendenhall Hotel Revolving Tables has been gone twelve years now) please contact me, but I think the list of round table restaurants in the South is now:
Walnut Hills, Vicksburg MS
The Dinner Bell, McComb MS
The Round Table, Columbia, MS
Bea’s, Chattanooga TN
Family style (sit with others, pass the food to the person on your right):
Mrs. Wilkes’, Savannah GA
Miss Mary Bobo’s, Lynchburg TN (their site at the JD site as they are owned by the same entity)
Monell’s, Nashville TN
The Smith House, Dahlonega GA
Dillard House, Dillard GA (used to be family style but I really think most everyone gets their own private table now)