June 2026
Travel instead of "tourist," then come home to make banana pudding
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Are you a traveler?
The summer travel season is upon us. Stateside vacations are booming, with nearly 70% of Americans choosing domestic trips, and destinations in the American South are dominating the list of top trending vacation spots.
I bet if you’re reading this, you have a trip planned somewhere in the South this summer. Even if you live here, chances are you’re taking at least one trip to another Southern location to go to the beach, get away from the heat in the mountains, attend a wedding, or visit friends and family. Will you be a traveler or a tourist?
Why do we secretly (or not so secretly) hate to be tourists or host tourists but long to be travelers? What is the difference?
I’ve spent years thinking and pondering this. I live in a city that’s visited by 8 million tourists a year, for goodness sake, so if I weren’t already considering reader focus for brands such as Conde Nast Traveler and Food & Wine when I’m working on projects, I probably still wouldn’t forget. (Tourists here routinely behave like Charleston is a movie set and not a working city with traffic laws, so I remember every time I get behind the wheel.)
I think the difference boils down to this: extraction.
If you arrive at a place only to consume fun/food/experiences and collect evidence that you’ve been, then there is an assumption that you’ve already decided in some respect what the inherent nature of a place IS for, for you. You’re “here” (wherever here is) to get, have, and document, not here to discover beyond your preconceived notions. That’s transactional, and if you stay in that vacationing space, you will always remain a tourist.
You have to get curious to shift into traveler mode; curiosity requires a dose of humility and being ok with ambiguity.
But get this: travel doesn’t just happen when you go to a place that is not your home. It also happens routinely when you eat. “Here” can be a restaurant. In fact, that’s how I fell in love with food! As a child in Charlotte, NC, our house was under a jet plane flight path, and when I was outside on my swing set, I often dreamed of getting on those planes to faraway places. I soon realized through television shows like Yan Can Cook and Julia Child that food and cooking could transport me to another culture, if just for a bite. I was hooked, and I’ve been a traveler ever since.
This Southern Fork community is for the traveler, and curiosity is the key.
Are you interested in connecting more than just consuming? Of learning the background, the context, the takeaway of a dish, a restaurant, or a chef’s story?
Then welcome. Unpack your bags and stay awhile. We eat well here, we know who cooks and grows our food, and there’s a seat at the table for you. Just don’t put sugar in your grits. ;)
Updates
Podcasts
Note: All links below are for Apple Podcasts, but you can find The Southern Fork on almost any platform that streams audio, from YouTube to Spotify and many places in between.
While the podcast is in pre-production for season 11, check out these episodes you might have missed from the archive of more than 380 interviews:
Le’s Sandwich Shop in Charlotte, NC, is one of the Charlotte Observer’s best meals under $10, and when you add to that that the classic bánh mì is routinely voted one of the best sandwiches in the city, it really is an amazing deal. Listen to my 2024 interview with Tuan Nguyen to learn more about this true mom-and-pop shop.
Author and editor Sara Bir and I had worked together for years — and recorded this 2021 podcast all about the paw paw fruit — before we finally met in person this week on Edisto Island. She’s been a truly instrumental figure in my writing career (including being one of the first national editors to hire me), and so I hope you’ll take a listen and learn more about her passion for native fruit!
My editor Sara Bir and I outside her family’s vacation beach house on Edisto Beach, SC this week. Sometimes when you live in a vacation playground, you realize beach time is so much better than a coffee date!
Articles
All the fanfare around the 250 celebrations is, in many ways, just that to me — fanfare, a lot of fluff without substance when our country is going through some divisive times. However, these milestones do serve as a reminder that we, flawed as we are, have made it as a “we” to here.
That’s why I am so honored to have contributed to Conde Nast Traveler’s 50 States, 50 People feature, which published earlier this week. My featured profile is first on the list (eek!) due to the serendipity of alphabetical order. Tour guide and historian Barry McNealy and I met last September when I was in Birmingham, AL for Southbound, and I was immediately struck by his groundedness and ability to hold horrifying history along with present joy and resilience. I am frankly thrilled that my passion project to profile him worked out in this way. I hope you’ll take the time to click the link and learn about your fellow Americans.
Other published media I like right now: Wayne Curtis is one of the best beverage writers in the business, and his article, “How the Secret Bar Took Over the World” in Imbibe is a great forensic study on the rise of the speakeasy you can read in 5-6 minutes. And staying in the beverage space, this post on Substack about the goddess nature of mezcal was fascinating.
Cooking soundtrack album: The Universe Smiles Upon You ii, Khruangbin
Best thing I cooked this month: Banana Pudding. I developed this recipe last year for Simply Recipes, and it was a smash up of all the things I love about my favorite versions, topped with an Italian meringue, because why not? I made it this year for our al fresco Mother’s Day brunch. If you make it, please tag @southernfork on Instagram because I’d love to see your take!
Until next time,
Steph