By STACEY PATTON WALLACE
By the time you read this column, Mother’s Day 2023 will have come and gone. If you are a mama, I hope your day was the best. May 14, 2023, was the first Mother’s Day I spent without
Barbara McEachern Patton — my sweet, wonderful Mama — and I dreaded the day with all that I am and ever will be. I couldn’t even attend the worship service at the church I love, Central Baptist of Opelika; I didn’t want to sob when they acknowledged all the moms. Instead, Mike and I had a devotion at home. As Brother Walter Albritton has taught me through three wonderful books he wrote and sent me on grief, “God hurts when we do.” Therefore, I believe that God understood.
As I’ve probably mentioned before in this column, Tom Patton, my sweet and hilarious Daddy, loved to fish. Daddy ran a trotline on the backwaters of the Tallapoosa River from the 1960s to the late 1980s. Since Daddy and Mama had three children to feed, clothe and send to Auburn University, that trotline was a good economical idea.
In the late ‘80s, Daddy often took with him Lindsay and Ryan, his two grandchildren who lived in Alabama. In fact, if Daddy left to fish early, my niece and nephew would cry, so that rarely happened.
After Daddy caught and cleaned those catfish, Mama would have a three-hour fish fry on Saturday. Mama cooked in a metal pot that was about the size of a Dutch oven; it had a wire handle at the top.
She fried catfish, hushpuppies, French fries and homemade onion rings (Mama got the recipe for onion rings from Aunt Martha “Mot,” her younger sister.). Man, those onion rings were the best I’ve ever eaten. They were crispy and not coated with 10 layers of breading like the ones in most restaurants.
Mama drained the grease from the food by laying the freshly fried fish (remember, I love alliteration), hushpuppies and onion rings on Piggly Wiggly paper sacks. She also made her own coleslaw and tartar sauce. We feasted like kings and queens.
I have NEVER had any catfish and the trimmings as delicious as my Mama’s. I plan to learn to make Aunt Mot’s onion rings and Mama’s incredible banana pudding this summer. This spring, I learned to make Mama’s wonderful pound cake with orange juice glaze; thankfully, it turned out pretty well, and none of my friends died from eating it. I’ll let you know how my next two cooking projects go. Again, Mike will be standing by with his trusty fire extinguisher.
Not long ago, Mike and I discovered a place that serves catfish ALMOST as good as Mama’s — The Backwaters at the Landing, located at 9883 County Road 379 in Valley, Alabama.
I’m sure glad that I heard about this restaurant from a lady whom I met in the waiting room at the Vein Center for Restoration in Opelika. By the way, if you are having trouble with your veins, Dr. Michael Aikens and his staff are great; they get an A+ from this retired English teacher. But I digress.
This sweet lady said that she read The Observer and my column, which certainly made my day. She said that I should write about this restaurant, which was located at the Long Bridge on beautiful Lake Harding. Boy, am I glad that I listened to her.
Not long ago, Mike, Jack, William and I traveled down County Road 379 to The Backwaters at the Landing. Now, this is strange to me: The restaurant is in Lee County, but it has a Valley, Alabama, street address and is on Eastern Time. As I have previously mentioned in this column, I think that all of Sweet Home Alabama should be on Central Time, or “God’s Time,” as Jack calls it. But I digress again.
When we arrived at the restaurant, I immediately felt at home in the very rural, casual atmosphere. Those types of restaurants usually have the best food, in my experience.
We went to the counter, placed our orders and then chose our table. I loved the beautiful view of Lake Harding from inside of the restaurant. Diners may also dine outdoors as well.
Our server Jenna was very sweet, patient and helpful. Also, even though the place was very busy, the service was extremely fast.
All four of us ordered the two-piece fried catfish fillets. Mike chose French fries and coleslaw for his sides, while I picked onion rings and a side salad. Jack ordered coleslaw and Brussels sprouts; William selected fries and green beans.
Oh. My. Goodness! How can you tell when the food is really great? When all conversation stops. This was the case at The Backwaters at the Landing.
As my much older brother Jim calls it: “feeding time at the zoo.” The only time our family is quiet is when we’re eating.
Everything tasted great. That was the best catfish that I’ve eaten in a long time. It wasn’t greasy at all and was definitely worth the trip. Jack even raved about his fried Brussels sprouts: “I would definitely come back and order that again. In fact, I’d come back just for the view.” I quite agree. Trust me: Run and do not walk to The Backwaters at the Landing.
Dawn Greaney, David White, and Clay and Terri Gullatt opened the restaurant on March 3, 2022. We met and talked with Dawn; she was a sweetie and a real hoot. Dawn, this review was for you.
Besides our delicious choices, The Backwaters at the Landing also serves diners a variety of appetizers, some of which include chips and queso, chips and world-famous Cat 5 salsa, fried green tomatoes and smoked tuna dip.
The restaurant also serves sandwiches, hamburgers, wraps, loaded nachos, shrimp and grits, grouper, shrimp and popcorn shrimp baskets, hamburger steaks and chicken baskets. Desserts include hot fudge brownies, key lime pie and peanut butter pie. I plan to try one of those when my A1C goes below 7.0.
The Backwaters at The Landing is closed on Monday and Tuesday. The restaurant is open on Sunday, and Wednesday through Saturday, from 4:30 to 9 p.m. Eastern Time.
The Backwaters at The Landing makes the grade with an A+ from this retired English teacher. Remember, “Pooh-sized” people NEVER lie about food. Enjoy!
Stacey Patton Wallace, who retired from teaching language arts for 30 years, is a professional diner. Her column, “Making the Grade,” will appear every other week in The Observer. Wallace may be reached at retiredlangartsteacher2020@gmail.com.