Palette Cafe (201 E. Pascagoula St, Jackson) is the Viking-owned cafe inside the Mississippi Museum of Art. The menu seems thoughtful and has several interesting-sounding options; the cafe also offers a daily special which was Red Beans & Rice when we went. We ordered the two most intriguing menu items: The Plantation Sandwich and the White Palette Sandwich.

The menu described the Plantation Sandwich as “Southern cornbread split and layered with smoked turkey and asparagus, more cornbread and topped with hollandaise sauce and crumbled bacon.” It’s as good as it sounds. …

The “soul spaghetti” at Collins Dream Kitchen (1439 Terry Rd, Jackson) is on John T. Edge’s list of 100 Southern foods to try before you die, and I have been hearing good things about the restaurant since before I moved to Jackson. So it’s embarrassing that it took me this long to get there, but I’m glad I finally did.
The restaurant doesn’t look like much on the outside (true of so many of the best places), but inside it is bright and open. You order from a cafeteria line and …

Hinds — Restaurant - Full Service
Zydeco Restaurant (6340 Ridgewood Court, Jackson) [601-977-9927]
According to their Craigslist job posting, Zydeco is “an authentic cajun & creole restaurant which will also serve nouveau regional cuisine.”  They’ll have a full bar, live music, karaoke, lunch, dinner, and late-night food til 1 am. Could be interesting!
Zydeco is located at the former Garfield’s location.  Keep in mind that sometimes newly inspected places might show up on the report a few days before opening for business; I haven’t been by Zydeco to see if it’s open yet.

People often ask me how I find new restaurants to try.  Most of the time I just drive by somewhere and stop. But I find out about brand new places because my awesome boyfriend wrote a program to look for new entries in the State’s restaurant inspection database.  From now on, I will post the new entries here so that you too can keep your finger on the pulse. If you make it to one of the new places before I do, please post a comment!
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Hinds — Bar - Full …

Bully’s (3118 Livingston Rd, Jackson) is a small, homey place that feels very family run—in fact, it feels a bit like someone’s actual home, except with a few more tables.

I know I talk  a lot about BBQ.  I know I usually say it is good.  I always mean it (I tend to only write about food I like), but this time I really mean it. Louise’s Open Pit BBQ (Corner of Hwys 51 and 27, Crystal Springs) is well worth the 30-minute trip (each way) from Jackson.

We only found the restaurant because Google Maps led us wrong in our search for another place in Crystal Springs. We drove by Louise’s, smelled the open pit, and suddenly became hungry.

Louise’s BBQ …

I have to say, first of all, that Cerami’s (5417 Hwy 25/Lakewood Dr, Flowood) does not make its own pasta (with a few exceptions). So I would understand if you stopped reading now, or scoffed at all of the positive things I am about to write. But do note that they have plans to start making all their pasta in-house, once they have set aside a section of the restaurant to install their pasta-making machines. Also note that Cerami’s is adorable, friendly, and quite tasty despite the pasta issue.

One of …