I love used book stores. And thanks to them, I am able to add two of Robert St. John's cookbooks to my collection. As with Deep South Parties, there are no photos of recipes (thus 4.5 stars instead of 5), and there are more essays from St. John. His writing is as delightful as his cooking.
What's the point of this collection: "nothing complicated, no foreign, hard-to-find ingredients, no complex methods or procedures, just hones home cooking with readily available ingredients, updated and legitimized for the home cook." ( )

This cookbook is more about American rural cooking than about southern cooking. In fact, it fails terribly for the most part when addressing "true" southern dishes. The author is from Mississippi...a bit baffling when you consider his choice of "southern" culture and food. There are much better choices out there and just about any good "local" church cookbook puts this one to shame. The book, as far as books go, is well done...but that in itself does not make this book worthy for a cook searching for guidance and recipes for and of southern cooking. Oh, and good southern food is made with fresh ingredients more often than not. Mr. St. John uses canned tomatoes for many if not most dishes requiring tomatoes and that just does not happen in the south where a garden is as much a part of the home as the telephone has become.

Recipes that do not belong in a book on southern cooking and culture but that are found in this abomination include: Vegetable lasagna, Lasagna with spinach, brandied carrots, asparagus amandine, and many more...in fact, why even have recipes for standards such as salad dressing (unless truly unique to the south), french toast, scrambled eggs, etc. !?! ( )

Being from Hattiesburg, MS, myself, I know the high standards Robert St. John puts into his restaurants. His cookbook displays this well, and the insightful and charming stories between sections is an added bonus. Spectacular recipes from a spectacular restauranteur. ( )

Great cookbook, worth having just for the stories he tells alone. The recipes are nicely updated - no more cooking canned cream of whatever soups. ( )

I cooked three of his recipes for my thanksgiving dinner and all were supurb...try Jill's mac and cheese, Linda's sweet potatoes, and the spinach madeline. I am looking forward to trying some things from his new one. ( )