Hey there, I'm Brett Ihler.

Actor, comedian, tug boat enthusiast.

Great food is a way of life in the natural state.

And brother, let me tell you, life is gooooooooood.

From fried chicken to Frito pies, it seems like every Arkansas town has something for eager eaters like myself.

That's why I'm setting out to discover the best folks and favorite flavors of the natural state.

So grab a fork and join me for a tasting menu of fun and more importantly, food.

On tastebuds.

Most people think of Arkansas as Razorbacks and rice farmers, but the truth is, depending on where you are in the natural state, it can look a lot different.

From medieval castles nestled in the Ozarks to a frog gigging on the white River.

Arkansans know variety is the spice of life.

Life around here, well, it's never boring.

Eureka Springs truly has something for everyone.

And if you're an early rising Arkansan with a big appetite, the answer to your breakfast cravings is nestled just below the bustling downtown.

Mud Street Cafe is the home and heart of owner and operator Jennifer Cross.

Who knows, it's a simple recipe to keep folks coming back year after year.

What do you think makes people want to come back here?

Like, what is it?

- To Mud Street?

Yeah.

- I think it feels like home.

Yeah.

- It's one of those.

It's got a cozy, warm environment.

Everyone's friendly here, and that's the main thing.

You have to come to work with a smile on your face.

And you have to be happy.

Our food is great.

You just feel loved.

You feel like you're part of the team.

You're part of Eureka.

You have the limestone walls and it's just cozy.

How did Mud Street come about?

It was open 30 years ago and it was opened like just the front room was the restaurant.

And back here is where they had art.

And then over the 30 years, got busier and busier and busier.

And now we have dining in both rooms and we still do local art.

What do you think makes this place special?

What would you say is the thing that makes Mud Street?

Some place that everybody should come to.

The atmosphere.

Yeah, yeah.

The atmosphere and the food is outstanding.

But the atmosphere.

Yeaaaaah.

- It's friendly and.

Yeah.

Vibrant and... Traeted good.

Yeah, yeah.

How long is this building been here?

1888 - 1888.

I have been here for 20 years.

Oh, wow.

Nice.

I got married and moved to town, and my sister in law own the place, so she's like, come to work for me.

I said, I'll do it for a week or two.

Till I figure out what I'm going to do.

Sure.

And I've been here ever since.

Alright, let's have some coffee.

Alright, what do we make of the day?

Making an alpine white mocha.

Start with our white chocolate.

A little bit of almond.

We're going to steam our milk here, so you get the beans.

Local.

Where is that?

- Mountainburg Roasters here in town.

They do.

We get all of our coffee from them.

Okay.

- Then we just add in our milk.

Save the little room.

Now we need to get our whipped cream out.

And then almond.

Almonds of course.

- Roasted almonds on top.

Lovely - White chocolate drizzle.

That is.

That's a winner.

And a straw.

Well, good.

So you get through the cream there.

- and then you drink.

Thank you.

Yay!

What are we making this morning?

What are we up to?

We got, spinach mushroom omelets.

Ham and cheese omelets.

Pancakes.

Cool.

- You name it.

Excellent.

Yeah.

We try to use everything that's allergy free and let our customers know what's in our food.

How many omelets do you like?

Make it every morning.

Would you say?

- As many as 10 to 15 gallons on the weekend.

Really?

- Of just egg wash alone.

Oh, wow.

That's crazy.

Yeah, that doesn't include the, cracked eggs that I make or anything like that.

I'm noticing these giant pancakes.

So is it just kind of.

It's all allergen free and everything is cool with that.

We make all of our egg wash and pancake in house our own recipes.

Nothing's out of the box.

Cool.

We do have a very small kitchen.

And they're just two of you back here doing the prep, and doing the cook.

right now.

Sometimes we could have as many as, four cooks.

up in here.

- Really?

Yeah.

So I appreciate you letting us in here.

Yeah, no worries, - Watch the magic happen It looks incredible.

Order!

Ooh.

Come on in.

Now we have food!

That would be me.

- Oh, wonderful.

Oh my goodness.

-Thank you.

Look at this.

-Can't have breakfast without a fruit cut.

Oh that is the greatest fruit cup I think I've ever seen in my life.

What do you got there?

This is an avocado and cheese croissant with an egg on it.

And local sprouts.

I'm having the Mexican omelet because I've talked to several people at least four or five people have been like, I'm having this.

I was like, all right, yeah, that’s what I’ll be getti You can't go wrong with that.

-Yeah!

Let’s eat That lives up to the hype, big time.

Hh my, there's so much in this thing.

What all is in here?

You've got onions and peppers and Mexican beans and cheese and then there's salsa and homemade salsa here.

We cook everything in house.

Everything is in house.

Except the croissants and we get them from a local bakery.

We try to do as much local as we can as well.

And Eureka is such a community.

So everyone tries to support everyone here.

If you're friends and you're doing it and you're... everybody's pulling together a great farmer's market in the summer, we get all of our stuff from the farmer's market.

Oh, cool.

-Whenever we can.

And I feel like that just makes the community that much stronger.

How involved are you in, like, the day to day process of the work here?

I'm very involved.

I will wait tables.

I will do the cash register.

I'll make a drink.

Whatever needs to be done, I'm there.

What's your favorite thing to be doing while you're here?

Talking to the people.

Yeah.

I love face to face, just like we're doing.

Sit down.

People come back over and over again so you can get to know grandkids and kids and you know, their lives.

Yeah.

And they know my lives.

And they talk about my kids and it's really fun.

It's my favorite part community kind of thing.

You guys are built here.

-It is.

In the day to day and feeling the vibe.

It's not going to be the same.

My heart is in this restaurant.

I've put 20 years into it and it is... It's my baby.

Yeah, that's a long time.

-Right next to my kids.

It's like, this is my home and my comfort spot and I love it.

And you can tell, you can tell if somebody really cares and somebody is there that is wanting to do the day to day, that is want, that knows the food, that knows the drinks, and all they know Knows the people coming in... People like to see the same face.

Oh of course.

And if they see your face there, they're like, this is this is the home that I keep going back to that because that's how it feels to me.

It's it's my home.

I think it's time for a little road trip.

And I think if we leave right now, we could make it to one of my favorite restaurants by lunch Buds unite!

Little Rock, the state Capitol, the literal heart of Arkansas.

It's no wonder more than 700,000 Arkansans live in or around the city.

That is a lot of mouths to feed, but the central Arkansas food scene is up to the challenge.

And one man has been leading the pack for over three decades.

Armed with an out of this world recipe book and a heart for hospitality.

Today we are going to Star of India, one of my favorite places.

I haven't been home in a while, so I'm excited to see Sami.

Let's get in there.

Oh, In there.

Yes sir.

Welcome home.

If you do feel like all the customer, just like your family member and your family, and you'll be running a pretty good business.

That sounds exactly right.

I always love whoever comes to eat here They are my family.

How did you first get, like, started cooking?

Like, how did you start doing this?

Well, I was used to living in Germany.

I was work just like a dishwasher.

Oh, really?

Yeah.

It's.

My journey.

Started from German to dishwasher to become... This stage today.

You know, most people's names when they come in, you embrace them.

Yeah.

I have a lot of people.

They've been coming since I opened this restaurant 33 years ago.

It's just like doctor and patient, you know?

-That's right.

You know, how you going to treat them?

How you going to give them good food?

I have only one taste.

I never been changed the taste tho, only one taste... My own cooking.

Chicken tikka masala.

And Saag Paneer, this is my favorite dish.

I know I have this chicken tikka masala.

I have dreams about this often, it is... -Dreams comes true., Mr.

Brett.

I know you are not lying.

It is the best.

This is, white chicken breast cook with a curry.

We have a special clay pot and we cook a chicken with the clay pot.

Then we cook with the sauce.

Tomato gravy Once you eat this one, people never go anywhere else in the world.

Because my mother cooked.

I learned Indian food from my mom, when I was a child.

Ohh.

And, she was cooking.

I was watching her.

Then I was thinking, you know, it's a good line.

Good way to start life.

You know, because I love to eat.

I love to cook, too.

Sammy arrived in little Rock 30 years ago, serving up a wide variety of North Indian cuisine and a welcoming buffet seven days a week, bringing flavors and techniques the city hadn't seen before.

Fresh bread, always good for health.

This is the special bread.

What do we cook here in the clay pot.

Then we put it directly over there in the.

And so you just slap it on the side there.

-And it sticks on.

Only... once you slap the bread takes only 30s to make fresh bread.

I would imagineso as hot as it is -See that we can make we can put some oil we can make without oil.

What about somebody need we can do.

-Really flexible as far as if somebody has dietary needs... you guys are there to take care.

That's true.

Nice.

I have about 35 different kinds of bread, 35 different kind.

And we have a garlic, plain, onion, potato, lamb, spinach, cheese peshwari naan, ginger naan, bullet naan I have spinach naan, I have...so many diff kind of naan, we made it here tho.

Once you eat this bread.

Ah ha, you will be in the heaven.

Oh I cannot, I cannot wait.

Let's start from here.

Here is a paneer.

This is a homemade cheese.

That's spinach, I'll tell you one thing.

People don't have that patient.

They cook with them 30 minutes.

I cook within 9, 10 hour.

12 hour.

Really?

Spinach for you.

This food when you eat this food, you will feel like two, three year old.

Hey, man, you eat Star of India, man.

Let's go!

Samosa you can have it.

Appetizer.

There you go, some rice for you Yes please.

Thank you!

Looks good for you.

This plate.

Oh you are nailing it.

And if your whole crew... Yeah.

You got.. I got one.

I'm ready.

-You’re too fast.

I'm sure you are more hungry than I'm hungry.

I am very excited!

Help yourself and bon appitete.

Enjoy your But we cook all the food hot, mild, medium the way you want it.

We can do it for you.

-Your hot is some of my favorite that I've ever had.

Yeah I have... -As far as spice.

Yeah, we do have some hot sauce.

Also.

We always put it in the menu.

Of course.

-If you do want hot, mild, medium we'll be happy to do it for you.

Perfect!

Are you happy enjoying the food, girls?

Good.

Wonderful wonderful.

See, Since we've been open, this restaurant... We have only one recipe.

We don't change it.

We don't want to change it.

Once you eat one time here... You know, like 33 years before people come here to eat here, we have same... Same food.

Yeah.

Same taste.

I have a lot of people that say, you cook this way, you cook that way.

I see, I know that way or this way.

I cook my own way.

-Your own way.

Yeah.

I gotta make it like mom did.

That's why we have only one taste -That's right.

Since we open this restaurant.

How involved are you, like in the day to day here?

Are you just, you're here all the time or like... Yes, because this is my house.

-Yeah.

And I have a two house where I sleep, and, this house when I'm working here all the time.

Yeah.

If you need catch me, you can catch me here.

Not on the phone.

I'm always Star of India Always there.

I always... never call, you know... I'm your boss.

I'm always call... I'm your friend.

Yeah.

We work together.

It's much better to run the business.

That’s being a good boss.

-Shall I take this one?

I'm so full.

Thank you.

Oh, thank you, thank you.

That's all I want.

That’s all I want to know.

Thank you.

Restaurant business is ... Like I said that you have to work very hard.

Yeah.

You know, if you can manage that hard work, you can open the restaurant.

Restaurant business is not bad, you know, unless you make bad.

Right!

Yeah, exactly.

Yeah, I understand that.

I feel like whoever comes to your family member, this is my family.

It doesn't matter which culture they are.

Yeah.

-And this for you.

And you have to deal with the... “Hey, you are my family.” I'm your part of the family too.

People always support you too.

And you can help them to get good food.

That's great.

I mean, you've set up an environment here where literally everybody feels welcome and like they are... You are always welcome home.

Yeah.

Oh, look at all the, you know, all the view.

We have a title.

Our title is welcome home Thank you so much.

You have a blessed day.

Please come back soon.

Appreciate it.

Oh, I am so full.

That was amazing.

But you know what?

I got a room for a little bit more.

So why don't we head up to the northeast part of the state for some meat that cannot be beat?

I've heard good things.

Let's go to try.

Located at the nexus of Arkansas, Tennessee and Missouri, Blytheville is one of the first Arkansas towns many travelers pass through.

With a histor in aviation and agriculture, A few people might realize the thing keeping people coming back is the ham.

No, I'm not talking about hometown celebrity, George Hamilton.

I'm talking smoked ham, which the Halsell family has been dishing out for over a century.

Fries and our onion rings are homemade.

They're fresh.

We're here at the Dixie Pig.

It's time to get some supple pork goodness.

Let's get it.

Becky.

-Hey.

How's it going?

-Good to see you.

Good to see you.

Ah!

Ooo!

Watch it!

Is this your pig?

That's my pig.

Don't worry, he doesn't bite.

-He doesn't bite at all.

We just oinks.

Oh, well.

That's good.

There's the other half of him on the other side.... Yes, it is.

-Oh, tremendous.

Now, can you tell me this Dixie Pig sandwich?

Right.

-I can.

Okay what makes it special?

Well, what's the Dixie Pig-ness of the sandwich?

Well, I'll tell you, our sandwich is very simple.

Yeah.

-It doesn't need a lot.

It speaks for itself.

It has a toasted bun, has our slow cooked pork, has our crunchy slaw with just vinegar and our Dixie Pig sauce.

That's all it takes.

And that's what everybody loves.

We're not going to change it.

We never have never will.

-Been the same always?

Absolutely!

Oh tremendous.

I’m so excited to try it.

So Bob's in the back at the pit.

I need to see this pit.

-You got to, you go to.

-Legendary.

What are we waiting for?

-Let's go.

Let's go, let's go.

I was about eight years old, and I was out there making some onion rings... one day.

Yeah.

One of my dad's friends came in and I had an apron on... I wasn't above that tall.

What you making Bob?

I said a dollar an hour.

Here we are at the pit.

This is legendary.

I'm so excited to talk to you about this.

Tell me a little bit about it.

How long has this been here?

Well, my granddad, started the business in 1923, and we built this particular pit in 1950.

We were at another location across town.

He closed it down and moved over here.

So this pit has been here since 1950.

What are you cooking up today?

We're doing, Boston butts and some ribs.

Ribs?

Oh, ho hoo hoo.

And, we'll put it on fat side down in the morning, about 8:30, ready to turn in about, oh, 1.

Okay.

And we cook with live charcoal.

We don't smoke.

And we're done cooking by 4:30 in the afternoon.

Oh, nice.

I put in anything on these, you just throwin it in... We put a little bit of, seasoning salt.

Okay.

-And it's real good seasoning salt.

And we'll marinate it with some of our big vinegar based hot sauce.

Oh, nice.

Oh, the vinegar base vinegar.

What makes that superior?

Well, a lot of people will like thicker sauces, but when they come here to the Dixie Pig, it's a lot different.

Our vinegar based sauce is just something everybody likes.

It's just something that was made in back when my granddad started business.

Just the way you've been doing it forever.

Nice.

We do not put anything on our barbecue.

Other than just our smoke and our touch.

We really to order?

I’m going to have my usual, chop pig salad with the house blue cheese dressing.

And I would like the pig sandwich and some onion rings, please.

Onion rings are homemade.

They're fresh.

So you're a big deal.

No, no, no.

Come on.

I'm just a country boy from Blytheville, Arkan That's true.

With a beautiful pocket square.

-Thank you.

You're very successful, man.

And what brings you back to Blytheville?

Yeah, I think, I've lived all over the world.

And I have to say, if you've ever read Faulkner or Eudora Welty and the stories of the Southern Delta, that's what we had.

The humor, the food, the hospitality, the intertwined lives.

The people still come home for weddings and funerals because it's part of who we are.

Yeah.

Have you tried the sauce?

Ohh!

Now, you don't get this kind of barbecue in Salt Lake City, I swear.

Oh, you're definitely don’t!

-Right!

I want to learn more about Blytheville, anybody I can talk to?

Oh my goodness.

Well, yeah, if you want to know about Blytheville.

I just see, the mayor just walked in.

The mayor's here!

We're at the Dixie Pig.

One of my favorite places!

Tell me why you love it.

The fish.

The fish!

-Yeah.

People come for the barbecue.

I come for the fish.

Oh, what is special about that fish?

Catfish.

It's pond riased.

-Yeah.

Freshly breaded and fried.

It's amazing.

As the mayor of Blytheville, like you guys have had agriculture, you've had the Air Force base, you've got all the steel.

What is the common thread that keeps Blytheville together with all of these industries?

-Resilience.

Resilience?

We are 30 years after an air base closure.

And so the resurgence of commerce, economy, tourism is happening as we speak.

-From an arts and culture perspective.

We have a unique opportunity here to turn the old air base into what Congress has designated as the National Cold War Center.

That means that a minimum of 100,000 visitors a year will add up to $9 million to our economy, which we which we can use to begin rebuilding our town again, rebuilding the schools, the hospitals, the infrastructures.

Alice Walton proved by building crystal bridges that a museum can be an economic driver.

Absolutely.

Graceland in Memphis gets a 1,400,000 visitors a year.

Our numbers work.

If we get less than 10% of those visitors to cross the River bridge, come into Arkansas, go to the Sultana museum in Marion, Johnny Cash's boyhood home, come into Blytheville to the Military museum at the National Cold War Center, and then, you know, drive on up into Missouri, go into Western Tennessee, go to the Tina Turner Museum in Nutbush, and then the Loretta Lynn Ranch, and then into Nashville for music, and then go up into Kentucky for the Bourbon Trail.

What a driving vacation that would be.

You've got a planned out!

You’ve got it planned out completely!

This sounds like an amazing vacation.

Everyone I've met here is passionate about things, and you guys wear your hearts on your sleeve.

What do you think that comes from?

It just comes from having to, rediscover why we're here.

Right.

I think the closure of the Air Force base was a big blow to us.

Both mentally, economically.

And so removing that veil of, uh, grief.

Yeah.

-If you will.

Yeah.

And just saying, hey, we can live again.

Yeah, yeah.

And getting back up and getting back into the business.

Getting back into the fight.

What is it that is it about this part of the Delta in Arkansas that brings you home and makes you want to invest in this place?

It's a great question.

Our hometowns worth saving?

It's like growing up in Mayberry.

Yeah?

Yeah.

How so?

This is family.

We've known each other since as long as I can remember.

Yeah.

-My oldest memories include the Halsells.

My oldest memories include eating at the Dixie Pig.

This was a gathering place.

This was a gathering place before every football game, every basketball game.

They'd stay up, stay open late for us to come back after the basketball games.

After the football games.

I thought every barbecue was as good as Dixie Pig until I left home and realized you have to come home to get barbecue like this.

Oh, for sure.

But you also come home to be welcomed back into the family.

Yeah, it's like a family reunion... every time you walk in.

Blytheville is clearly a town of deep traditions, like the Halsell barbecue, but sitting down with Byron and Mayor Melissa Logan can't help but get excited about the city's future.

The Halsell family's story echoes the stories of countless other communities across the state.

Small businesses and family farms across Arkansas have been handed down for generations, keeping those small blips on the map vital and alive.

From a hot cup of coffee and a familiar place to the welcoming tables, bringing friends together to timeless traditions handed down for generations.

Food, family and tradition all play a role in calling Arkansas home.

And with flavors like these... Woo, Arkansas is a great home to have.

So I say grab a fork and dig in.

Maybe we'll see you further on up the road.

Everyone's welcome at the table.

All you got to bring is your appetite.

You got to put it in drive first.