» Paula's Home Cooking: We'll Save These For The Men Options

[DawnPetters]

I saw the episode in which she makes fish, fish shaped corn bread and a spinach salad with hearts of palm and strawberries. Paula was fine until she did the salad. She had the salad made only not dressed and she fingered the slices of palm hearts and brought one piece up to her nose sniffing the fragrance. She gushed over the way they smelled and tasted and then she put the sniffed and fingered slice back into the salad. I was disgusted.

[Bungalow Joy]

Ewwww, beh! See, I don't want much more to say anything too negative about her since that would greatly diminish my already slim chances of bagging that tall boy of hers, Jamie. I doubt he'd go in for anyone badmouthing his dear mama.

[keckler]

Okay, I just watched Paula for the first time and she was doing an oyster extravaganza. Her accent bugs me a bit since it seems like she's trying so hard to have one -- I'm sure she's got an authentic one but it sort of seems like she's going overboard -- but I loved the rest of the episode. She's got a few personality quirks that could get annoying over time -- screaming when her sons helped her off the boat and onto the oyster bank -- but the food looked amazing.

[jellywager]

I met Paula Deen!!! I was so excited. I just got back from Savannah. We first went to The Lady and Sons for dinner. I didn't see her so I thought she never really worked there. The food was good but we ordered the deep fried lobster (eh, the lobster absorbed all of the cooking oil and the oil really took away from the taste of the lobster..they served it w/melted butter, can you believe it?). Dessert was heavenly...fudge pie.
I decided to go back in a couple of days for lunch to try the buffet. At dinner they also offer the buffet. For lunch you can get the buffet or something off of the menu.
After our lunch I asked the waitress to put Paula's first cookbook on our ticket. She said "Sure, and she is here today so you can have her sign it." I was in shock, my hand went up to my mouth and I gasped. I turned around and sure enough in the gift shop she was. She was very pretty.
The waitress walked me over to her, she was busy talking to someone. When it was my turn I was very nervous (I know... Why?). I could not really even look at her. I told her I love her show. She said "Well, I love making the show for you." or something like that. Then I had to tell her I make her pumpkin cake for Thanksgiving. She asked me if my family liked it. Then my husband took our picture and she had me hold up her book in the picture.
She was very cute, but more serious than I thought she'd be. Her accent was the same as on TV.

This post has been edited by jellywager: Jan 17, 2004 @ 8:07 pm.

[DawnPetters]

I met Paula Deen!!! I was so excited.

I would be too. Sounds like it was a neat experience.

[KateQD]

I'm so jealous! So glad you had such a nice experience!

Did anyone see the Naomi Judd show where she did an expose on Paula and her family? It was so good. They interviewed her sons and all the people who work at her restaurant. And they showed Michael, who has cut his hair, but grown a beard. They are so cute together! It was a really nice peice on her and her sons just must adore her. Everyone seemed to adore her, as do I! I highly recommend trying to catch it if you can, although I have no idea what the show was called.

[CydW]

Oh, jellywager, how fun! How tall would you say Paula is? She looks small on the show, but TV can be so misleading.

The one time I had lunch at the restaurant, I think Jamie (sp?) was holding down the fort. This was before the series started, so I had no idea who he was, but he was certainly cute and capable!

Kate, I was intrigued by the promos for the Naomi Judd show but didn't get a chance to tune in. I'll have to go over to the Food Network site to see if there are any reruns scheduled. The fact that Paula is featured is added incentive!

[biakbiak]

CyDW - If you turn on your tV right now the Judd special is on.

[jellywager]

CydW Paula was about 5'6 and she looked thinner than she does on TVShe was very sophisticated looking compared how she is on TV. Thanks everyone for sharing my excitment...it was fun. The staff at the resturant was very friendly. Our first waiter would put his hands on my back or arm, which I have never expirenced before. They all had smiles on their face, like it was a fun place to work. They all wore t-shirts that were sold at the gift booth, they had different sayings on them. The two I liked said "Worth the Weight" and "Body by Lady and Son's".

[greybear]

Our first waiter would put his hands on my back or arm ...

I am seriously confused. Why would a waiter need to put his hands on a customer's back or arm? I'm fairly sure that I'd deck him and then ask, "WTF is your major problem?"

[Nocona]

Touching arms and backs is a part of your flare! [/sarcasm], I'm sure the servers get trained on southern hospitality. It takes a special personality. When I worked at Fridays they taught us how to work cumstomers with flamboyant cheerfullness and tricks to make them buy more...after my training ended so did my permanant fake grin, and cheerleader-like personality( a manager of mine actually told me to be more "bubbly") I basically treated my customers the way I would want to be treated, being payed attenion to without being in your face...and lo and behold, my tips were just the the same as the flare people, if not better.

Anyways, I just made her peanutbutter version of her pumpkin gooey cakes, absolutley phenomenal...and it should be with two sticks of butter. I can hear my arteries hardening.

For some reason I love this woman, for all this talk about leaving the menfolk bigger peices, she seems like a very strong lady...its gotta be hard for a once-agoraphopic, single mom to have built up a southern cooking empire up from the ground.

[Rimerr]

I don't know if anyone else noticed this, but in the Naomi Judd special, there seemed to be a shout-out to our board.

Paula, Jamie and Bobby were in the kitchen cooking lunch during their Sunday reconnection time when Paula leans over to show Jamie how to do something. Once her instruction is done, she said, "I'll let you finish that while I stand back here and have another drink." Next shot showed Paula downing a margarita.

I laughed so hard - I cried. It just shows that we knew she was hitting the bottle between recipes!

[BetJo]

Bless her heart, she has worked so hard, she darn well deserves a nip or two between recipes.

Did her husband pass away, or did they get divorced? I never hear the boys talk about him.

[jellywager]

She mentions that she was divorced with two sons when she started her business. I don't know why... it could be a juicy reason.

This post has been edited by jellywager: Jan 19, 2004 @ 11:15 am.

[KateQD]

Yes, she divorced in 1989.
Quoted from the prologue in The Lady and Sons Savannah Country Cookbook
"In 1989, newly divorced and unemployed, I was living in Savannah and was determined to succeed. Using the cooking skills I learned as a child, I invested my last $200 in a catering business that I started with my two sons, Jamie and Bobby."

She doesnt mention what happened, but I imagine he left her for a younger woman. Hell its probably Sandra Lee's new husband that was Paula's old one.
Those boys are so close to their mom, I bet they absolutely hate their father.