Food + Film: 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?' Feast Thursday At Alamo Drafthouse

Steve Martin -- maker of jokes, player of banjo -- once quipped that writing about music was like dancing about architecture. But what would he say about writing about food cooked about film?

Well...we think he would totally want to get in on it, especially if it was an Alamo Drafthouse feast presented in honor of that old-timey Coen Brothers masterpiece O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000).

To refresh y'all's memory, O Brother is about a band of hapless jailbirds (led by George Clooney) all tangled up in music and misadventure in 1930's Mississippi. The film is loosely based on Homer's Odyssey; movie highlights include John Turturro at his most absurd, and Gillian Welch and Alison Krauss at their most divine.

O Brother will screen this Thursday at Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar, and executive chef John Bullington has arranged for an accompanying feast. The meal -- while technically fit for a king -- is actually better suited to an ultra-fine chain gang. Here's the menu:

Appetizer
Beef and gravy on toast points (prison food), pulled porkraised brisket (greasy horse) and gopher grits (gopher)

Soup
Frog 'you thought it was a toad' Jambalaya

Entrée
Chicken fricassee with greens, spicy corn on the cob, and mashed potatoes

Dessert
Giant peach pie fresh off the sill, served on newspaper

The cost is $60. Two added incentives: a portion of ticket proceeds from this showing will benefit Capital Area Food Bank. In addition, this screening will be introduced by Austin American-Statesman food writer Addie Broyles.