Mississippi’s Coastal Region Offers an Oasis of Delicious Destinations

In partnership with: Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce

Fresh ingredients and local products are the hallmarks of Mississippi’s Coastal Region. 

Austin Sumrall believes that Biloxi has a flavor all its own. Literally. 

Locally Loved Flavors

“One of the things that drew us to the coast was that it is between one of the most nutrient-rich bodies of water in the world and one of the most plentiful farming areas in the country,” says Austin Sumrall, a Mississippi native “We should know where our food comes from and take it one step further and know who our food comes from.”

Sumrall is the chef and owner at White Pillars, a farm-to-table restaurant in a restored neoclassical mansion. Before opening the restaurant in 2017, he searched the Gulf region for local farmers, fishers and purveyors who could provide flavorful, local ingredients to highlight on the menu. Even the furniture, dishes and artwork were purchased from local artisans.

Everything on the seasonal menu from the heirloom tomato pie and grits with salsa verde to the cast iron seared pork chop and wood grilled Gulf fish is sourced locally. Farms include Delta Blues Rice, Home Place Pastures, Two Dog Farms and Harbor Hill Farms. 

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Ryan Bradley, a fifth-generation commercial fisherman, owner of Sea Alis Seafood Company and director of Mississippi Commercial Fisheries United, supplies fresh catch and farmed oysters to White Pillars and other farm-to-table restaurants across the state. Other partnering restaurants include Jordan River Steamer, Manship and Lou’s Full Serv.

Bradley isn’t surprised by the demand for fresh, local seafood. 

“Biloxi was the seafood capital of the world,” he says. “People travel from all over the country to taste the seafood we catch right here.”

A Taste of the Region

In fact, it’s not uncommon for customers to meet fishers at the docks to purchase fresh catch ranging from red snapper, grouper and amberjack to shrimp and oysters. Out-of-state visitors have even been known to fill coolers with seafood so they can take a taste of the Mississippi Gulf Coast home with them.

Companies like The Grumpy Man, Shroomdom Inc. and MisBEEhaving Bee’s satisfy the hunger for local products with salsa, fresh mushrooms and local honey. 

Beekeeper Leilani Rosenbaum and her husband (and mushroom cultivator), Anthony Rosenbaum, co-own Shroomdom Inc. and MisBEEhaving Bee’s. The couple even offers classes in the art and science of growing and foraging for mushrooms. They supply flavorful fungi to White Pillars where it’s featured in the mushroom flatbread, duck breast and crispy confit, and bone marrow and steak burger.

“Everything we do has one ingredient, the way nature intended,” Leilani Rosenbaum says.

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Fresh from Mississippi’s Coastal Region

Nathan Sanford, the owner of The Grumpy Man, used a recipe his parents spent decades developing to transform peppers, tomatoes, onions and other fresh ingredients into salsa. The mild, medium and hot salsas sold under The Grumpy Man label were so successful that Sanford expanded the product line to include pepper jelly, pickles and jalapenos that are sold in boutiques, specialty shops and grocers across Mississippi.

“My parents spent a lot of time adding and taking away ingredients and taking binders full of notes until it was just right,” he says. “Now, we have a product that is fresh, simple and delicious.”

Sumrall believes that all of the foods grown, raised or caught in the Mississippi Gulf Region are so packed with freshness and flavor that it doesn’t take much to make them shine. 

“Our specialty is working with the best, freshest ingredients,” Sumrall says. “We feel like if we start with the very best ingredients, we have the best chance of ending up with the very best product we can put on the plate.”

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