Murray State University's Tent City Homecoming festivities are the backdrop of a unique cuisine opportunity that is featured as a tailgating segment in the September/October 2003 issue of MidSouth Living, a magazine published by Murray State alumna Kristi Phillips Rowan.
The 1987 fashion design and marketing graduate is showcasing the culinary talents of Bob Perry, a 1982 graduate and assistant executive director of the Belle of Louisville, and Mark Renaud, the former executive chef for the Murray Country Club and founder and chief cook for the Allegro Gourmet Cooking Team.

Renaud and Perry teamed up to develop a menu that showcased their respective cooking styles. Perry said serving his famous tailgating Pasta Salad w/ Tomato Basil Vinaigrette alongside Renaud's Cherry Smoked and Grilled London Broil during MSU's annual Tent City festivities brought back many memories of past Homecomings and tailgating experiences he participated in as an undergraduate at Murray State University. "It was fun to come back to my alma mater and serve up a taste of Kentucky for my fellow alumni and fraternity brothers."
Founded four years ago by Rowan, the magazine has over 100,000 readers. More than 35,000 copies are distributed through newsstands, direct mail, subscriptions and other distribution outlets. Since 1999, the magazine has expanded to include two annual home and garden trade shows at the Agricenter International in Memphis, a Saturday morning television show on News Channel 3, a television production company and a website. The television show reaches 80,000-100,000 viewers each week according to Nielsen ratings.

Rowan describes MSU as "combining Ivy League tradition with down-to-earth character on a gorgeous campus" in the upcoming issue. "I was very excited to return to my alma mater last fall to cover this tailgating opportunity for our magazine," she said. "Murray is a special place to me."

Dinner club tips, wine-tasting parties, gardening and room-by-room decorating are promoted throughout the magazine. The food and entertaining section began from an innovative idea and features recipes provided by southern restaurants that are then prepared on location in a home setting.

Rowan said the section took on a life of its own. "I knew that restaurant reviews have been done in other magazines - I thought why not try and see if we can obtain recipes from upscale restaurants," she explained. "Now we have a waiting list of restaurants that want to participate in this section and stay booked a year in advance."

Perry, a sociology major and a Pi Kappa Alpha alumnus, has earned a list of numerous cooking credentials since his days at Murray State. He worked as in a small hotel in Moustiers Saint Marie, Provence, France, in exchange for his room and board at the inn. He has served as a buffet chef in Columbia, S.C., owning Farmer's Hall Restaurant in Clemson, S.C., and has been a chef on a 114-foot two-masted schooner and a 73-foot wooden sailboat. He also has been a featured guest on The Food Network's "Dining on the Train" and "The Thirsty Traveler." As host and chef for Bardstown's Bourbon Festival Jim Beam Cooking School for the past three years, Perry has also been featured on the Travel Channel for the "Kentucky Derby Special" and in The Wine Enthusiast magazine.

In addition to being the 2001 Top Ten "Memphis In May" Championship Competition Barbecue Team, Renaud is a former executive chef for Merv Griffin Enterprises and the Marriott Corporation. His cooking adventures have also carried him to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., and other places throughout the country. The 2002 Grand Champion recipient for "Cooking Up The Blues" in Jackson, Tenn., the 2002 first place recipient for the "Wabash Ribberfest" in Mt. Carmel, Ill., a 2001 first-place shoulder winner at the "Wabash Ribberest" in Mt. Carmel, Ill., and the 2001 first-place recipient for beef preparation at the National Capitol Barbecue Contest in Washington, D.C., held on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House, are among the many awards that Renaud has captured through his competitive traveling barbecue contest ventures.

To order a subscription to MidSouth Living, or to order a copy of the September/October issue, contact Rowan at www.midsouthliving.com or at (662) 890-3359.