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ORAL HISTORY

Bubba Frey

Bubba Frey is a Cajun jack-of-all-trades and a keeper of traditions. While he professes not to have strayed much from his home turf of Mowata—a town so small that the United States Postal Service doesn’t even acknowledge it with a zip code—he possesses extensive knowledge about, and perspective on, the culinary history of his region. Straight out of high school, Bubba took to rice and cattle farming, just as his grandfather and father had done. He also dabbled successfully in crawfish farming, but when that market became saturated and the Mowata Store came up for sale, he made a life change.

Bubba Frey’s Restaurant, which connects to the Mowata Store and maintains limited hours, is where Bubba serves guinea hen gumbo made with his own hens during the cooler months, as well as stuffed beef tongue every Thursday for lunch. Other specials might include whole battered-and-fried quail that also were raised by the chef, stuffed ponce (stomach), local frogs’ legs, and baked Muscovy duck. On Saturday nights in the restaurant, Bubba, a self-taught fiddle player, and other musicians from the area gather for a genuine, and free, Cajun music jam session.