Family-style meals at Lynchburg, Tennessee’s historic boarding house come with a free side of etiquette lessons
Some say having lunch at Miss Mary Bobo’s is like stepping back in time, like a visit to their Southern grandmother’s house.
Every day of the week except Sunday, the quaint, white-columned home in Lynchburg, Tennessee, opens its doors to serve family-style lunches to neighbors and out-of-towners seated together. A procession of heaping dishes of fried chicken and okra, cornbread casseroles, candied apples and pies arrive at the table, with one well-heeled host proceeding over each table.
With grace, ease, and humor, the hosts oversee every thoughtful detail of the guest experience, from never letting a glass go empty to initiating conversation among strangers—a task that isn’t easy to do in today’s tech-addicted, politically divisive climate.
As hungry diners fill their mouths, the host helps to fill the room with laughter and offers wisdom on everything from local lore to the best way to enjoy Tennessee whiskey.
The History of Miss Mary Bobo’s
The Lynchburg staple started as a boarding house in the 1820s—decades before Jack Daniel began distilling whiskey down the road.
Then in 1908, a few years before Daniel died, Mary Bobo and her husband bought the property and renamed it the Bobo Hotel. Miss Mary, as she was known, ran the hotel until 1983 and left behind her legendary brand of Southern hospitality that continues today.
Christine Poston, senior manager of the Jack Daniel’s Homeplace, knows firsthand the value of this hospitality. A former manager of Bobo’s (which is now owned by the distillery), she is also a graduate of the prestigious Jack Daniel’s Co-op Program scholarship for area college students.
Here, Poston shares her expert tips for leading a flawless luncheon on par with the pros.
The Role of a Great Host
“They have a really big job. It starts when people first walk through the door,” Poston says. “They are standing there, greeting them and seating them at the table. The host has control of the whole experience; it’s in their hands.”
Many of the hosts are retired from former careers, Poston adds, noting that most are local to Lynchburg and already well familiar with the town’s history. “Usually, we don’t even have to recruit,” she says. “They come to us and say, ‘I want to eat. I want to talk. I want to meet people from all over the world.”
Making Everyone Feel Welcome
On average, visitors come from 48 states and 20 countries every month, making for a diverse audience. Before breaking bread, a host prompts everyone to make introductions and share something about themselves, whether it’s a New Year’s resolution or where they call home.
“When guests sit at the table and are very unfamiliar with each other, it’s the hosts’ job to tell the story of Miss Mary and Lynchburg, but also get to know everybody,” Poston says. While some groups are very interactive, ask a lot of questions and are eager to have fun, others may be quiet and require more work to find connections.
“You have to do well at reading your groups,” she says. ”We love to say that people enter as strangers and leave as friends, and for the most part, that is really what happens.”
The Failproof Foods to Feed a Crowd
While the menu varies based on the seasonality and the creativity of chef Chris Dickey, the family-style meal generally follows the same format that Mary herself would have served.
“We place the food on the table strategically. Most people won’t realize that,” Poston says. The hosts help explain the dishes and remind diners to pass dishes to the left.
Casseroles are almost always a crowd-pleaser. “Our mac and cheese or hashbrown casseroles are my favorite,” Poston says. Many of the original recipes can be found in Miss Mary Bobo’s Boarding House Cookbook, sold in the onsite gift shop.
Nothing tops the holiday meal, however. “Chicken and dressing, sweet potatoes—there is just something very seasonal and cozy about sitting around the table at Christmastime eating that,” she says. “You just feel like you’re part of a family. A lot of people relate it to being at your grandmother’s house. It’s very sentimental.”
On Bobo’s Secret Ingredient
While Lynchburg is located in a dry county, chef Dickey sneaks the region’s most famous product—Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey—into the sweets. “We can’t serve it to you at the table, but we can put the in the food,” Poston says.
Candied apples are topped with a shot of Jack after they are baked. Pies are served with homemade whipped cream flavored with whiskey instead of vanilla. After all, when it comes to turning strangers into friends, a dose of whiskey certainly doesn’t hurt.
The Tell-Tale Signs of a Successful Luncheon
At the end of every meal, Poston says diners walk away with more than a full stomach—they also walk away with a feeling. “If you hear laughter coming from the dining rooms, you know you did your job because guests are having a great time,” she says.
She recalls one meal was particularly fulfilling when a gentleman gave her a rave review. “He said, ‘This is the first time in many, many years when I looked around the table and I didn’t see anyone on their cell phone. Everyone was involved in the lunch. That is something that doesn’t happen often, so job well done.’”
