, a column featuring writers we love sharing stories of food, conflict, and community.
The Mitchell home and kitchen were Hollywood glamorous, which was no surprise given that Anna Barbara’s husband, Willie Mitchell, a slim and elegant man with a neatly trimmed mustache, was one of the most prominent producers in the music world. He most famously ran Hi Records in the 1960s and ’70s, and in a legendary musical partnership with singer-songwriter Al Green, produced eight albums that sold over 20 million copies.
When the Temptations traveled to Memphis to do shows in the 1980s, Anna Barbara often invited them to the house for dinner, sporting perfectly manicured nails and pale coral lipstick. Willie held court at the end of the table, but the group came for his wife’s cooking and hospitality, always arriving at the door with two dozen roses. Prime rib, collard greens, purple hull peas, potato salad, fried corn. These were the kinds of dishes Anna Barbara served in her finest china.
To understand my mama and Anna Barbara, two of the most glamorous women I’ve ever known, you have to understand the history of Black women in the American South. For far too long Black women had been denied access to jobs that would allow them to wear nice clothes. Cooks working for wealthy white families were made to wear dowdy uniforms despite their critical roles in shaping Southern foodways and culture. So were Black women working in department stores. But not Anna Barbara.