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If your appetite yearns for sizzling steaks andshrimp served in style, head to Cowboy Jim’sRiverside Restaurant for a dining experience likeno other. Tucked between a private lake and theBouie River just 10 miles from Bassfield, Prentissor Collins, MS, the open-air dining of “ClubTexas” and rough hewn lumber exterior is thefirst indication that newcomers to Cowboy Jim’sare in for a unique treat.

“After Katrina, we took trees that were on theground and our neighbors gave us trees and wehad a friend with a portable sawmill to mill themup into 12 X 12 beams,” said Kathy Whitehead,

who co-owns the restaurant with Jim Lott, anative of Prentiss. “We built out over the waterwith those. It’s a favorite place to eat here.”

Another unusual feature is the welcomingcommittee comprised of geese, ducks, chickensand guinea fowl, many of whom roost in anupscale cabin lit with nothing less than a pinkcrystal chandelier. Guests do double-takes asthey approach the highly refined chicken housewhich blends perfectly with the manicured yetwhimsical restaurant and grounds.

From the “Rodeo Room” which featuresmemorabilia from Jim’s days promoting rodeo in

Escape to Rusti c River s i d e DiningCowboy Jim’s

Rustles up Flavorful Steaks and Seafood

STORY BY KRISTEN TWEDT

PHOTOS BY ELIZABETH SANFORD, MOMENTS TO MEMORY PHOTOGRAPHY BY LIZ

the South to the Old Mill Room featuring a func-tional water wheel, the ambiance of the place sat-isfies anyone’s craving for a casual dinner amongfriends in an inviting atmosphere.

New to the scene at Cowboy Jim’s is theThursday ice cream social, featuring free home-made ice cream for everyone.

“It just amazes me how many kids come outhere who haven’t ever had homemade ice cream,”said Whitehead. “They love it! My kids grew upeating it. We have a White Mountain self-turningice cream freezer that holds five gallons. It’sabout three feet tall and big as a barrel. The keyto good homemade ice cream is about 50% recipeand 50% what kind of ice cream freezer you useto freeze it.”

Above all else, Cowboy Jim’s focuses on serv-ing up delicious food that makes customers eagerto return.

“We’re all about the food and customer serv-ice,” said Whitehead. “We want you to come outhere to relax. Wear your comfortable clothes.Bring the kids, too. We have ducks, turtles andfish they can feed. There are Tonka trucks andtoys for them to play with. Moms have a timegetting their younguns out of the play area sothey can eat. And for goodness sake, come hun-g r y . ”

Whitehead and Lott pride themselves on fresh,hand cut steaks and hand-battered seafood towhet the most demanding appetite.

“We grill our steaks over wood flame withMesquite for outstanding flavor,” saidWhitehead. “Our grilled and barbecued shrimpare favorites here. We have folks come from theCoast who say our fried butterfly shrimp are bet-ter than any they get at home. Our most popularmeal is the steak and shrimp combo, which is a14 oz. ribeye with half a dozen barbecued orgrilled shrimp.”

Fried green tomatoes with white sauce toppedwith lump crab meat is Whitehead’s recommen-dation for starters.

“We serve complimentary turnip greens andhushpuppies, so you have to pace yourself”advised Whitehead. “Our hushpuppies have

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green onion and some secretingredients. They are good.”

Deda Mills, a regular cus-tomer of Cowboy Jim’s sincethe establishment opened eightyears ago touts the entireCowboy Jim’s experience ase x c e p t i o n a l .

“The food is just great,” saidMills. “My husband says it’s thebest steak he’s ever had. Theplace is always decorated forthe current occasions,Christmas, New Year’s, andValentine’s, St. Patrick’s Day orjust western style. The waitress-es are always dressed for theoccasion also. They have livemusic and a great family atmos-phere. It has always had a good

down home atmosphere in avery comfortable setting.”

Live entertainment onFriday and Saturday includessaxophone blues and jazz per-formed by Davis Hawthorneand country music by HowardParish. Waitresses line dancewhen they’re not too busy wait-ing tables and birthdays arealways a big deal.

“When we can, our wait-resses come out and line dance,and we do our best to makebirthdays special,” saidW h i t e h e a d .

Donna Sandifer and EdBrumfield from Brookhavenrecently celebrated their birth-days at Cowboy Jim’s in the

company of a couple dozenfriends and family.

“Everything about this placeis special, from the minute youwalk in the door,” saidSandifer. “It’s especially so onyour birthday.”

Signature strawberry short-cake made from slow-bakedpound cake proves to be a staramong the lemon icebox piesand coconut cakes.

“You want to see Robert St.John get mad? Tell him we’reout of the strawberry short-cake,” laughed Whitehead, ref-erencing the notable chef,author and restaurateur fromHattiesburg.

Fourth of July is a big deal at

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Cowboy Jim’s, and Whiteheadencourages visitors to celebrate withthem on the Bouie River.

“We host a giant fireworks showon the lake on the barge every year,”said Whitehead.” “If the 4th is on aday we are not open, then we havefireworks the Saturday before. T h i syear, the Fourth of July is on aFriday, so we’ll get things going thatnight.” The display begins around 9p . m .

Whitehead emphasizes that thestaff at Cowboy Jim’s always aims toplease and wants to know if anythingis not up to par.

“Customer satisfaction is veryimportant to us. We take constructivecriticism very well. We do listen. Wehave some grandmas who keep say-ing we need to put a dance floor in,but we’d have to take some tablesout, so we haven’t done that yet,”laughed Whitehead.

From Jim’s secret seasoning to amenu loaded with decadent options,Cowboy Jim’s Riverside Restauranttantalizes the palate and offers anentertaining ambiance replete withhumorous décor and captivatingfoliage. For waterfront dining off thebeaten path, Cowboy Jim’s proves afavorite haunt for locals and long-dis-tance visitors, an escape from theordinary into a welcome respite forcasual diners.

Bring your cash, as it’s the onlyway to pay. Reservations availablefor parties of 15 or more only. Noalcohol served. Cowboy Jim’s is openT h u r s d a y - S a t u r d a y , 4-10 p.m.(Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas.Open every other holiday) Call: 601-7 6 5 - 3 1 2 5

Restaurant is one mile on left.

Directions:From Hwy 589 at Sumrall: Take Hwy 42 west to Bassfield.At 4-way stop in Bassfield, take right on Hwy 35 North. Gonine miles. Restaurant is on the right in Covington County.From Hwy 49: Take Collins exit. Take Hwy 84 West, go 9.5miles. Take left on Hwy 35 South.