Jean Anderson, jeanandersoncooks.com

Interstate Eateries: A Guide to Down-Home Cooking along North Carolina’s Interstates (2nd edition) by D.G. Martin ($6.95, Mann Media, Inc.). Shortly after I relocated to my home state of North Carolina after years in New York, I subscribed to Our State magazine and became a fan of Martin’s series on the old-timey inns, tea rooms, cafes, diners, soda shops, and barbecue joints just a short drive off our major interstates: I-26, I-40, I-77, I-73/74, I-86, and I-95 . To be honest, I feared that the big fast-food chains had pushed the old-timers off the map. Thank heavens, they haven’t. And thank heavens for Martin’s indispensable guide, a must-have for every glove compartment. Leafing through Interstate Eateries, I spotted several favorites: Moose Cafe in Asheville hard-by the Farmer’s Market . . . Stamey’s Old Fashioned Barbecue in Greensboro . . . 501 Diner in Chapel Hill . . . A & M Grill in Mebane . . . Bullock’s in Durham . . Lexington Barbecue in Lexington . . . and the Village Diner in Hillsborough. With his discerning palate, Martin has chosen wisely and focused on eateries that do down-home Tar Heel cooking proud (many have been in the same family generation after generation). “To me,” he writes, “home cooking means more than just good food . . . I know I have found my kind of place when the restaurant is full of local people moving from table to table . . . laughing, exchanging news, and maybe even arguing about politics.” North Carolina is a big state – 503 miles from Manteo on the coast to Murphy up in the Smokies -- but with Interstate Eateries along for the ride, you’re in for a feast. Make that feasts, plural. Note: If Interstate Eateries has sold out at your local bookstore, ask them to order a copy or two for you. Or order directly from Our State magazine at www.ourstate.com.