The Majestic Butter
It’s been way too long since I’d eaten at Sophia’s at Fairview Inn, so my honey and I decided to enjoy a special lunch date. There were many things we loved about this meal, one of which being completely non-food related. We got a great deal of enjoyment adding variety to the all female, 60+ crowd that filled the beautiful, upscale dining room. What can I say? If the experienced eaties in Jackson eat here, the rest of us should take serious notes. As for me, contrary to my inherent nature to fly under the radar whenever possible, sticking out like a sore thumb in this place gave me a feeling I can only describe as fantastic. New year, new me? Quite possibly.
We sat at our table for two trying to look over what our green, young waitress told us was a brand new menu, but we kept getting distracted because of all the hilarious “chatter” going on around us. “I’m going to the beauty parlor tomorrow at 6 a.m. for my weekly perm…” Six in the morning, really? Dang, that’s early.
Our focus quickly did a u-turn from the chatter to the butter as it was placed on the table, along with a basket of rolls. If Eat Jackson ever has a butter display throwdown, Sophia’s should enter (and so should Nick’s with their towers of butter pats!). The Sophia’s butter balls—literally—are what I like to call “texturized” on the outside, and they are served in a small, yet fully loaded condiment bowl. Maybe we are simple minded, but we got quite a kick out of these balls of joy. And of course they tasted uh-mazing melted onto the hot rolls!
Decisions, Decisions…
Just about the time the fascination with the butter balls began to die down, our waitress came back to see if we wanted any appetizers. The bread was enough for me, but my better half went with the Creole Seafood Gumbo. We went ahead and ordered our “real” food, too. The special of the day was Fish and Chips, so husband went with that while I opted for another fish dish. As tempting as all the new dishes like the Roasted Tomato and Brie Sandwich or the Apple Pecan Chicken Salad Plate sounded, I just couldn’t shake the craving for fish. I asked the waitress which she preferred between the Cornmeal Dusted Rainbow Trout and the Sautéed Redfish. She suggested the former, and so that’s what I chose! This Rainbow Trout dish (which isn’t offered on enough menus in town, in our opinion) comes served over Buttermilk Chive Mashed Potatoes with a side of green beans. The part that had me so intrigued with this dish was the jalapeno-molasses butter that comes melted on top of the fish. Since I was trying to be healthy by ordering fish, I chose to ignore the fact that it had a little butter on top.
Fish and Sweet Potato Chips!
And Then There Was Food
Our beautiful food got thumbs up from both sides of the table. The fish from the Fish and Chips was lightly fried and very tender. The chips (a.k.a. fries) that came alongside were actually Sweet Potato Fries. They added some nice color to the plate, and they were particularly excellent when dipped in the special tarter sauce that came on the side.
As For My Trout…
This was the first time in a really long time that I’d had this variety of swimmer, so I was excited to test it out. My first bite was some kind of fine. This light, simple fish, dusted with cornmeal and topped with that jalapeno-molasses butter had some real personality. The most outstanding characteristic of this fish’s personality was definitely the butter… Oh, the butter! There are few ways to make butter better, but adding jalapeno and molasses (a crazy yet amazing combo) to it is one of those ways. I’m not lying when I tell you this: Sophia’s knows butter. They know it well.
Trout Topped with Heavenly Butter
Butter is the Winner.
Beautiful butter balls and butter-made-better on my fish, down-to-earth service from our sweet waitress, and some fun background entertainment all made for a memorable, all-star lunch. Thank you, Sophia’s, for the good time. And keep up the butter-perfecting strategies you have going back there!
Sophia’s is open for lunch on Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 2:00, open for dinner on Tuesday through Saturday from 5:30 to 9:30, and open for Sunday Brunch from 11:00 to 2:00. They also take the Eat Jackson card, so you can get buy-one-get-one-free desserts!
When was the last time you at at Sophia’s in Jackson?
Sophias at Fairview Inn
734 Fairview Street
Jackson, MS 39202
(601) 948-3429
fairviewinn.com
Price: $$$
