Culinary Delights and Blues Heritage
By Greenwood CVB
06/12/2008
Beginning where rolling hills meet lush, flat lands, Greenwood is in the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Its history – as striking as its landscape – continues to
fascinate generations. Whether it’s a taste of Southern cuisine, a Viking cooking class, a cotton history lesson, a stop on the Mississippi Blues Trail, shopping in our renovated downtown or a weekend duck hunt, Greenwood has everything you’re looking for.
Contact Information:
t: view phone 800-748-9064
e: view email info@gcvb.com
w: view URL http://www.greenwoodms.org
- Culinary treats including Delta hot tamales, barbecue or soul food
- Learn about cooking at the Viking Cooking School
- Hands-on lessons from expert instructors and notable chefs
- Experience the History of the Blues
Tour Dates:
Number of Days: 2
DAY 1:
Beginning where rolling hills meet lush, flat lands, Greenwood is in
the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Its history – as striking as its landscape
– continues to fascinate generations of group travelers. Begin
your day at The Alluvian Hotel on Howard Street, a cosmopolitan,
boutique hotel of a caliber normally reserved for large cities. With
45 rooms and five luxury suites, this hotel redefines Delta elegance.
After touring the Alluvian, the trip continues with a tour of the
Viking Range plant where a full line of Viking major appliances and
culinary products is designed and manufactured and sold around
the world. The next stop is the Viking Cooking School where
cooks of all experience levels...from beginner to world-famous master
chefs...come to teach or learn with the best. Lunch is served at
the Crystal Grill, a Greenwood institution that has been in operation
for a century. The Crystal serves a wide variety – from fried chicken
to Southern vegetables, Gulf seafood to hot tamales – to folks from
all walks of life. The afternoon is free for shopping on Howard
Street in historic downtown Greenwood. Howard Street offers
Mississippi-made gourmet foods, pottery and art, antique and
estate jewelry, crystal and china, fine men and women’s clothing ,
home furnishings, shoes, custom framing, and more.
DAY 2:
Years ago, self-taught musicians emerged from across the Delta to
shape and mold America’s only indigenous art form – the Blues.
Artists such as Charley Patton, Muddy Waters, Luther “Guitar Jr.”
Johnson, Willie Foster and B.B. King have their roots here. Start the
day by visiting the Greenwood Blues Heritage Museum and
Gallery. Here you can learn the complete story of Robert Johnson,
as well as the stories and memorabilia of other Delta Bluesmen. At
Rolling Fork, begin your trek up the famous Highway 61. This is the
time to put on your favorite blues songs and feel the magic. A cotton
field outside of Leland was the birthplace of Willie Foster in
1921. In downtown Indianola you can see the corner of Church and
2nd Street, where B.B. King played in the early '40s and left his
handprints in the sidewalk. Not too far from this site is Club Ebony,
one of the oldest and best known juke joints in the state. Since
1945, Club Ebony has hosted such musical icons as Count Basie, Ray
Charles, James Brown, Ike Turner, Little Milton, Willie Clayton, Bobby
Bland, Howlin' Wolf and B.B. King.
Travel north to Ruleville, home of Jimmy Rogers (1924-1997). If you
turn west on Highway 8 at Ruleville, you'll see Dockery Farms. Some say this is where the blues as we know it came alive. From here, travel to Merigold and Po' Monkey's Lounge, one of the last surviving rural jukes. Around evening, pay a visit to Clarksdale, home of the Delta Blues Museum and other significant blues sites, such as the Riverside Hotel, and, of course, the infamous crossroads of Highways 61 and 49, where legend says Robert Johnson traded his soul to the devil for his musical abilities.
