Southern Routes

Ben Vaughn, chef, TV host, and family man, explores his transplanted Southern roots with an edible journey highlighting some of the best-kept food secrets in the South.

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In most of Ben’s experiences, the humble Southern chefs share their long protected family recipes but it’s not an adventure if everyone cooperates. Some of these institutions guard their recipes like members of the family.

To the untrained eater, the secret ingredients it takes to create such an iconic dish would remain a bewitching mystery without the original formula. However, Ben’s journey and mission is to deliver the most amazing 100 Southern recipes in Southern Routes.

With his charm and ability in the kitchen, award-winning chef, author, and Food Network host Ben Vaughn acquired each recipe–one way or another. If he was unable to get the recipe directly from the source, Ben replicated it himself, only having tasted the dish. After deciphering the exact mix of ingredients, his recipe was put to the test when the recipe gatekeeper gave him the thumbs up.

Southern Routes highlights iconic Southern kitchens all throughout the Delta such as…



Mat & Naddies and Carlos and Rocky’s in New Orleans;
Our Way Café in Decatur, Georgia;
McMel’s, City Café, Dipsy Doodle, and Wendell Smith’s Restaurant in Tennessee;
and Martha’s Menu in Mississippi

This book is more than a recipe book but instead a soulful, informative ride through the most delicious parts of America.  

Experience the real recipes, real people, and real stories as Ben journeys through the South exploring Southern Routes.