| Carolina Food by Joe Pruitt |
| Joel has a wonderful website in Rockingham Remembered. Since he has brought back so many wonderful memories for me, I thought I could answer some of his requests to comment on things I remembered from Rockingham or my childhood there. This one is mostly about Carolina food. I remember putting $5 (at what, $.47 cents a gallon?, enough for the whole weekend) worth of “pushmoline� in one of the gas guzzling Chryslers or Plymouths and heading out to Tom and Sarahs. I would always order 2 foot long hotdogs “all the way� with a “ZIP� drink. Food better than a king could have. I have eaten fried rice in Taiwan, schnitzel and Berliners in Germany, frog legs and éclairs in France, paella in Panama and Spain, and now goulash in Kosovo, Bosnia, Croatia and Hungary, but my tastebuds were dealt a serious blow many years ago to find out Tom & Sarah’s had changed management. Recently I was dealt another blow because Bradshaw’s in Hamlet had gone into history, also. They made a good hamburger all the way with chili. My father used to take us to a dirt parking lot beside a service station, in front of the old Safie Mill, on Hot Dog Special night. The whole family would go, 5 kids and 2 adults, just for the ride. I think the name of the place was the Chicken Box. I think he could get like 10 hot dogs for about $2.00. With 5 kids, he needed probably $4 worth. I traveled our local area, Cheraw, SC to Biscoe, Mt. Gilead and Troy, and even to Wilmington, helping my father in his Southern Pest Control exterminating work. We ate in restaurants beside the road, in textile mill cafeterias, and truck stops. I never had a bad meal, whether it was fast food, restaurant or cafeteria style. Bring back the old hot dogs and hamburgers, ALL THE WAY! |