One of the many charms of the South is the moment when you walk into a random gas station and walk out with a box of the best fried chicken you’ve ever had in your life.
Our gas station food is a point of pride, a method of filling up not just your gas tank, but your belly and your soul.
Photographer Kate Medley spent portions of the past 10 years roaming the South in search of great food at gas stations and general stores.
Her photos are compiled in a new book called “Thank You Please Come Again,” published by the website The Bitter Southerner.
Kate found a lot more than fried chicken out on the road. In fact, she found the Southern melting pot — immigrants from all over the world who carry on their traditions in the back of a Texaco somewhere. The pictures she took will help you understand not just what America looks like now, but what it tastes like.
This book will make your mouth water. You might want to grab a snack before you dive in.
Music in this episode (via Free Music Archive)
- Satellite 4, "Street Food"
- Kirk Osamayo, "Waiting in the Grocery Store"