Meant to celebrate the region's long growing seasons, the meat and three is, as you might guess, meat along with three sides, sometimes offered buffet-style and sometimes ordered at the counter. According to legend, this particular format comes from Nashville Tennessee and iconic institutions like the (now closed) Pie Wagon, though according to restauranteur Hap Townes they weren't always called a meat and three: In the 1920s when the restaurants came about, the plate with your choice of sides and protein was simply called a lunch plate.

The meat and three is about variety and seasonality: While collards are a staple year round, they're especially prevalent in the winter months when other options are few. In the summer, okra and tomatoes might be on offer, and beans (whether dried or cooked from fresh) are a year-round reliable standby.
So, too, are sides that play loose and free with the definition of 'vegetable': cornbread, for example, or coleslaw. Many meat and threes also have starches to help you balance out your protein and veggies: pasta salad, mac n cheese, or mashed potatoes, that majestic side that rides the line between veggie and starch. There are desserts, too, as well as one of my favorites: Spiced sweet potatoes, fragrant and sweet, and which ride the line between a healthy veggie and a decadent dessert.