Every once in a while, you come across an eating establishment that you have to talk about.  That happened to me yesterday in rural Mississippi.

Charlie’s Catfish House.

The place to eat in rural Jones County Mississippi is Charlie’s Catfish House – no question about it.

This area of Mississippi is 1.5 hours east of Jackson, and 35 minutes north of Hattiesburg and 60 minutes south of Meridian.  The county has 67,000 citizens and the county seat is Laurel, which is the birthplace of Leontyne Price and the location of today’s popular HGTV’s show Home Town.  Charlie’s Catfish House is located in neighboring Ellisville, a town of 4,500 residents.

Jones County, which I have had the opportunity to spend considerable time in over the last three years, has wonderful people and many positives, but it is a poor county in a poor state.  Some statistics.

Mississippi ranks as the poorest state in the union with a median household income of $52,719.  Jones County is even lower at $49,451.  The national per capita income is $43,313, but in Jones County it is $24,486.  Of the 3,143 counties in the country, Jones County is the 2,696^th poorest.

21.3% of the population in Jones County lives in poverty, compared to 12.5% nationally.  Over 25% of the children in the county live in poverty.

Nevertheless, Charlie’s Catfish House is unbelievably popular.  Every time I have been there the parking lot is totally jammed packed, full of cars and trucks.

You may ask what makes Charlie’s so unique and interesting.

First, Charlie’s Catfish House is only open three days a week – Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11-9.  What restaurant do you know is only open three days a week?

Second, the menu.  It is the smallest, shortest menu I have ever seen.  Just seven items.  There is no menu to be handed out to you.  No, the only menu is posted on a sign on a wall.  That’s it.  Nothing else. Take it or leave it.

Third, every order comes with two sides.  One is coleslaw, which is to die for.  I have had a lot of coleslaw in my life, but this coleslaw is by far the best.  In addition, the portion of coleslaw is huge.

The other is a combination of French fries and hushpuppies.

Hushpuppies!!  The classic southern dish is made with the same ingredients as cornbread, but the batter is thicker, fried ending with a different texture.

How did hushpuppies get its name.  One story is that Confederate soldiers making dinner around a campfire heard Yankee soldiers approaching, so they tossed their yapping dogs some fried cornmeal cakes and ordered them to “hush, puppies!”

Fourth, with every order comes lemon slices and an onion slice.  And I mean a good-sized slice of onion.  Take a look at this picture.

Fifth, everything is fried.  Catfish is the main stable here.  And when you order a catfish, you get a whole catfish.  Head, tails, the whole kitten kaboodle.  Yes siree.

A word about southern fried catfish.  I don’t know Charlie’s unique recipe, but I am assuming that it soaks the catfish in milk and then dredges the catfish in a mixture of flour and cornmeal with garlic, peppers, onion, eggs, hot sauce and yellow mustard.  All this prior to deep frying.

Sixth, the payment system is really clear.  Cash only.  No credit cards.

People come from miles around to patronize this eating establishment.

I must admit when I walk in, I get the feeling that I am in a warm, welcoming place and that I am going to get some good home cooking.  The restaurant continues to win awards.

Bottom line.  When you get anywhere near Jones County Mississippi on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday you must stop at Charlie’s Catfish House for a phenomenal meal.

Even though Charlie’s Catfish House has its idiosyncrasies, it works. I can’t wait for my next meal – coleslaw, hushpuppies, and catfish.