Jackson Free Press logo

This story originally appeared in the Jackson Free Press. It was added to the Mississippi Free Press website in 2025.
Note that any opinions expressed in legacy Jackson Free Press stories do not reflect a position of the Mississippi Free Press or necessarily of its staff and board members.

• You put mascarpone on your bagel.
• You get a bit high sniffing a real tomato.
• You only eat seasonal foods you can buy within 50 miles of your home.
• You eat at Parlor Market three times a week even if can’t afford toilet paper. At least at the bar.
• You order your olive oil from Italy.
• You order your salsa from Texas.
• You get a new Calphalon for your collection every holiday from your mom.
• You’ve seen “Julie & Julia” more than you’ve seen the original “Star Wars.”
• You know the difference between turmeric and saffron. Intimately. (And prefer the latter.)
• You carry around a special insulated bag for your restaurant leftovers.
• You take a bag of your own dried spices on vacation.
• You spend more on groceries than you do the condo.
• You’re addicted to food-porn blogs. (You know who you are, you pervs.)
• You love to go to ethnic grocers where everyone knows your name.
• You’re wasting your life watching cooking shows.
• You line up all your ingredients in little bowls when you cook. And then videotape yourself.
• You know who we mean when we say “Nigella,” “Alton,” “Rachael” and “Anthony.”
• Your leftover lunches are the envy of the office.
• You snap more pictures of food than people.
• You follow chefs on Twitter. Hundreds of them.
• You relax by rearranging your refrigerator.
• You buy your dry goods from Rainbow and then keep them in big pickle jars you found behind Rainbow.
• You go to Everyday Gourmet more than you wait in drive-throughs. Just to browse. (Wink, wink.)

And from Facebook & Twitter:
• Jamie Weems: You order fois gras for dessert at Parlor Market.
• Caroline Crawford: You spend more on wine than you on shoes. Especially when you really love shoes.
• Caroline Crawford: Your fingers always smell a little like fresh garlic.
• Xavier Cassius Moblus: You debate with your spouse whether to use black truffle oil or shaved white truffles on the grits.
• JordanRHillman: You spend your Saturdays perfecting a homemade potato roll for the burger you already spent months working on.

Share your crazy foodie habits @jfpbiteclub #jxnfoodies

Mississippi native Donna Ladd and partner Todd Stauffer founded the Jackson Free Press in 2002 in the capital city. The heavily awarded local newspaper did many investigations heralded across the state and nation and served as a paper of record due to its diversity, inclusion, in-depth reporting and deep connection to readers and dedication to narrative change in and about Mississippi. In 2022, the nonprofit Mississippi Free Press, founded by Ladd and JFP Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin in 2020, purchased the journalism assets and archives of the Jackson Free Press. A Google grant through AAN Publishers enabled Newspack's integration of the JFP archives into the Mississippi Free Press website to become part of a more searchable archive of recent Mississippi history and essential journalism.