Louis and Billie Van Dyke’s The Blue Willow Inn Cookbook

Chicken and Dumplings, Fried Green Tomatoes, Cornbread, Collard Greens, and Sugared Pecans! By any measure, the Blue Willow Inn in Social Circle, Georgia is as southern as you can get. Proprietor Billie Van Dyke says that no one is allowed to leave hungry, and certainly no one should after feasting on a variety of Southern salads, meats, vegetables, breads and desserts and, of course, sweet tea, the “Champagne of the South,” and lemonade. Housed in a gloriously restored southern mansion, The Blue Willow Inn is home to Southern hospitality and charm at its best. The Blue Willow Inn Cookbook offers delicious Southern recipes, vintage pictures from the early days of Social Circle, and fascinating anecdotes about the restaurant. It’s a book that’s wonderful for reading or for cooking. The greatest restaurants in America are its wonderful independent regional restaurants. And there are no greater experts on America’s regional restaurants than Michael and Jane Stern. “Coast to coast,” said the New York Times , “they know where to find the freshest lobster rolls, the fluffiest pancakes, the crispiest catfish.”