by Eddie Wilson
Longstreet Press, $21.95, Paper
If your first reflex is to judge a book by its cover, you’ll be missing at
least half the fun of Eddie Wilson’s new Threadgill’s: The Cookbook. On
the surface, it seems to be an innocent restaurant cookbook — the commercial
alternative to having a friend cooking in the well-known joint’s kitchen.
Judging from the cover, you’d expect to find a few menu secrets from Austin’s
downhome institution and maybe learn how to cook some of your favorite dishes
at home.
Recipe hounds won’t be disappointed — nearly every dish that has ever
appeared on Threadgill’s menu is represented here — but The Cookbook also tells about a million other stories. Using the landmark
gas-station-turned-beer-joint-turned-restaurant as a backdrop, Wilson explains
how his trademark homestyle foods developed from — no surprise — his mother’s
“Mississippi farm food format.” Most recipes include the history of the dish at
hand, while the chapter introductions provide a solid and riveting insight into
the evolution of Southern food culture. If you’ve never heard your grandmother
tell cooking stories while she rolled out a perfect pie crust, The
Cookbook is the next best thing.
Wilson’s cookbook also serves as a great informal history of Austin since the
Prohibition, with an emphasis on the near-mythical years of 1960-1980. Wilson’s
recollections — from childhood memories to his involvement with the Armadillo
World Headquarters — permeate the book and are illustrated with family
scrapbook photos and other memorabilia. Recent arrivals to AusTown will
finally be able to understand the connection between yodelling
bootlegger Kenneth Threadgill, pickled pig’s feet, and Janis Joplin. Jack
Jackson’s graphic rendition of the Threadgill’s story shows pivotal scenes from
the restaurant’s past as only a comic book can.
To be honest, if you buy the book, it may never make it to the kitchen. As
good as the food sounds, you’re more likely to get swept up in the stories,
which are as compelling as the recipes for cornbread, spinach casserole, and
double chocolate ice box pie. Sure, you’ll get hungry while you read, but after
all, it’s only a short drive to Eddie’s place… — Pableaux Johnson
This article appears in November 8 • 1996 and November 8 • 1996 (Cover).