The Delta, Distilled
Make the most of a day in the Mississippi Delta by exploring its cultural heart, from Greenville to Indianola (and back again).
To make your day in the Delta region really count, divide your time between Greenville and Indianola.
Where to Stay:
At Greenville’s Belmont Plantation, you’ll be settling into one of the last pre-war homes to remain standing in the Delta. Before the Civil War, with few levees to hold back river floodwaters, settlers avoided building anything very permanent. But Belmont remains the exception, having withstood flood, foreclosure, and the region’s various economic storms. Now the Greek Revival and Italianate-style home offers six B&B suites and an event space. Featuring intricate architectural details, some call Belmont home to the “finest decorative plasterwork in Mississippi.”
What to Do:
Hop in the car for a thirty-minute ride to Indianola. The birthplace of the legendary bluesman B.B. King now pays honor to his life and career with the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center. Right up the road is Club Ebony, a historically significant African-American juke joint that has operated continually since opening its doors in 1945. Legendary bluesmen who played here include Howlin’ Wolf, Little Milton, and B.B. King himself, who owned the club for a while, until donating it to the B.B. King Museum.
Where to Eat:
Crown Restaurant in Indianola keeps it fresh with a new menu of inspired “new Southern” cuisine each week. One constant, though, is Catfish Allison, a menu favorite—farm-raised poached catfish fillet gratinéed with a Parmesan, butter, and green onion sauce. The original Doe’s Eat Place is family-owned in Greenville. Famous for its tamales, the legendary Doe’s version is still made using the original recipe dating from 1941. A simple, straightforward menu, Doe’s does just a few things—steaks, mainly—but they do them really well. So well, that Doe’s was named one of America’s Classics by the James Beard Foundation.