I had dreamed for weeks about feasting on a big bowl of Brunswick stew in the home of its birthplace. Although there are those who strongly disagree, Brunswick stew is said to have originated in the city of Brunswick, Georgia, and therefore carries the city’s name. We spent last week there and on its accompanying Golden Isles.
Since my discovery of the meat-based stew, I have enjoyed many variations of the tasty concoction and in many locations across the South. I have long imagined how cool it would be to indulge in a bowl or two of the savory stew in the place of its origin. Brunswick County, Virginia claims to have been making Brunswick stew long before Georgia stirred up their first potful. I’ll let the two places settle their argument. I really don’t care which one made it first, I’m just glad somebody did. They can both claim bragging rights.
Sadly, and much to my chagrin, I was not able to fulfill my dream. No, it was not because Brunswick, Georgia doesn’t have Brunswick stew…they do, but they also have seafood, and I do love seafood. The first few days of our stay I found more seafood than I did stew, so I indulged in what was readily available. About midweek, I may have indulged in the seafood a little too much. I had a blackened shrimp Po-Boy sandwich that was about the size of a small submarine. That was on top of an already ingested onion-and-cheese sauce with chips appetizer. Long before the night was over, those fantails were doing backflips in my stomach…perhaps in that cheese sauce. After that, I didn’t want any shrimp, seafood, stew or much of anything else for the next few days. By the time I was ready to chow down again I had long gone from Brunswick…the city or county.
Even though I missed out on the stew, I am certainly glad I did not miss out on the area. We decided to set up camp in Brunswick because it is known as the Gateway to the Golden Isles. Several barrier islands lie between Georgia’s mainland and the Atlantic. You can only get to several of them by boat, but you can reach Jekyll, St. Simons and Sea Island by causeways from Brunswick, so that was where we pitched out tent for the week. Okay, actually we didn’t even bring our tent, so we stayed at the Holiday Inn Express…not just “last night” as in the commercial, but every night. It was convenient and they serve breakfast!
We spent the first day touring the city of over 100,000. I have now walked down Broadway, in New York and Nashville, not to mention Rainsville, Alabama. I have walked the Royal Mile through Edinburgh, Scotland. I have walked on Bourbon Street…in a perfectly straight line. And, I have now walked down Newcastle Street, through the heart of Old Town Brunswick.
Oh, my, what a lovely little city. We spent most of our day visiting the antique stores, coffee shops, a great bookstore, a guitar shop and a place called Markers. Makers is an Arts-and-Crafts Café where you can make your own piece of pottery, fire it and paint it, all while drinking a delicious glass of cider, or whatever you wish. If you’re not feeling creative, you can purchase something someone else has already made. We painted an already made Santa Claus tree ornament.
We will hang our new ornament on our tree later, but if you will hang with me for the next week or two, I’ll tell you more about the Golden Isles.
Bill King can be reached at bkpreach@yahoo.com.
