“HE ONLY MADE TWO GOOD DECISIONS HIS WHOLE LIFE,”
says Susie Headrick. “The other was marrying me.” (Image 14)
Image 14: Green Top Bar-B-Que US Highway 78 W • Dora, AL 35062 • (205)648-9838
“When he told me he was going to buy the Green Top back in ’71, I would have no part of it, but he did it anyway.” Back then, the Green Top was more bar than barbecue. A place where the locals could let off a little steam after their shift in the coal mine. “It did make sense that he own it, but I really just thought it was an excuse to fuel his drinking.”
The previous owner, Edith Carey, had so much confidence in Leo that she viewed the sale as a paid vacation. Thinking Leo would fall flat on his face, she would get the Green Top back at a fire-sale price.
Being a business owner did not change Leo one iota. He was the same good timing guy as before. “If it wasn’t for my dad and uncle, we never would have made it,” grandson and now manager Tony Headrick told me. “They both left the mines to run the place and grandpa was the entertainment. He would sing to the customers using a Crystal Hot Sauce jar as a microphone. People would come just to see him. We even had some ‘Lovable Leo’ T-shirts printed up. I still hear stories about people wearing their shirt on vacation half way around the world and someone recognizing it.” (Image 15)
Image 15
The Green Top did eventually win over Susie, and it was under her management that the transition from rowdy roadside bar to family-friendly barbecue joint took place. “We sell a lot more tea than beer now. A lot more,” Tony says. That change did not occur overnight. (Image 16)
Image 16
Back in the day, Susie used to keep a night stick behind the counter and was not afraid to brandish it to straighten out a miner who may have had a few too many. That crowd now goes to Welsey’s Booby Trap down across the road. (Image 17)
Image 17
NOT ON THE MENU “HOPPIN’”JOHN
Fry up the bacon in a skillet. Drain grease and chop up bacon. In the now greasy skillet, stir in the garlic and onion. Wash beans.
In a pot with 6 cups water, cook the dry black-eyed peas (do not soak overnight). Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Combine with cooked bacon, onion and garlic. Stir occasionally and cook with lid on for about 1-1/2 hours, or until beans are tender. Do not over cook. Serve with equal amount of rice.