TheSmokies.com

We want to thank Jim, one of our valued subscribers, for letting us know that the main article links for the last couple of newsletters haven't been working. Here are updated links. Thanks for your patience in this matter. Welcome to Foodie-ville in the Smokies As we start these rankings, let me say that these are among my favorite restaurants in Sevierville in the Smokies, all bunched into one neat little grouping. If time, budget, and capacity allowed, I could go from one to the other,...

Welcome to Foodie-ville in the Smokies As we start these rankings, let me say that these are among my favorite restaurants in Sevierville in the Smokies, all bunched into one neat little grouping. If time, budget, and capacity allowed, I could go from one to the other, enjoying myself right into a food coma. I’m frankly amazed that they can all exist in such a small, and off-the-beaten-path area... Read More 🍽️The Foodie Guide to The Smokies🍖 A steak lover's dream: Peddler vs Alamo Rating two...

I'm Going To..Nateland..Oneday A Nashville comedian is ready to challenge Dolly for celebrity theme park dominance, or is he? Nate Bargatze – generally considered one of the best touring comedians in the country – is working to build a theme park near his hometown of Nashville. Is this a publicity stunt or a serious endeavor... Read More 🍽️The Foodie Guide to The Smokies🍖 11 Best Places to Eat in Gatlinburg So, where do the locals like to eat in Gatlinburg? We break down our favorite...

A Smokies Showdown: Myron Mixon vs Calhoun's Today, there are nine Calhoun’s locations – two in the Smokies – and Calhoun’s remains the biggest player in the game. But a challenger has arrived in the Smokies, backed by another regional culinary powerhouse. Myron Mixon – a partnership with an award-winning, reality show famous chef and Kennedy Concepts - has drawn a line in the Gatlinburg sand. There's a new battle for the right to be Gatlinburg’s premier barbecue destination... Read More...

Planning your 2026 trip to the Smokies? The leaves are mostly on the ground. The ones that are left in the tree are dead and barely hanging on. Except when the snow falls, the mountains themselves are varying shades of brown. It’s winter in the Smokies—time to start planning for spring and summer and maybe even beyond. With this in mind, here are some upcoming dates for 2026 to plan around... Read More 🍽️The Foodie Guide to The Smokies🍖 🍔 Blue Moose Challenges Calhoun’s Blue Moose takes on...

A Georgia BBQ Legend has Joined the Fray: Myron Mixon BBQ Company It takes a certain level of chutzpah to bring your BBQ game to an area with a well-established identity. And when I learned Myron Mixon was bringing a BBQ concept to Gatlinburg to replace Crawdaddy’s - a Cajun place and oyster bar – I was somewhat skeptical. There is a lot of good barbecue in the mountains. Some of it is excellent. Did we really need another place slinging pulled pork, ribs, and brisket? Read More 🍽️The Foodie...

5 Things Not to Do at Dinner Shows (According to a Local) Dinner and a show. Sounds like the perfect night out – or matinee – in Pigeon Forge. Dinner theaters have long been part of the fabric that is Pigeon Forge. But it’s only in recent years that everyone woke up and followed Dolly. So what are things not to do when attending a show... Read More 🍽️The Foodie Guide to The Smokies🍖 A steak lover's dream: Peddler vs Alamo Rating two of the top steakhouses in the Smoky Mountains... Read...

The History of Moonshine in the Sugarlands In 1904, Horace Kephart, a librarian/outdoorsman who tended the stacks at the Yale University Library and, for a while, worked for an American rare book collector in Italy, separated from his family and made his way to the Mountains of North Carolina. He spent the rest of his life living amongst and writing about the people of the Smokies and beyond. When Kephart wrote about a remote, hard-to-reach, and sparsely populated area of the mountains, he...

Artist’s Unique Creatures to Make U.S. Debut in North Carolina There are a lot of strange creatures in the Smoky Mountains. Some of them are real – we’re looking at you, Hellbender salamander – and others are rumored – we’d look at you, feral people, if we could see you. But a Danish artist is bringing something no one has ever seen in the Smokies before … trolls. The event will be a unique combination of art and nature... Read More 🍽️The Foodie Guide to The Smokies🍖 11 Best Places to Eat in...