The Finest Bacon Money Can Buy

It's time for the world to know about Benton's. Benton's Smoky Mountain Country Hams. Benton's bacon. It's an authentic delicacy. It's only made in East Tennessee. It'll change your life.


This little hole in the wall on highway 455 near Madisonville, TN is a real deal smokehouse. It's every pig's nightmare. They smoke and cure country hams and their bacon is really something else. It's like no bacon I've ever had before. Think about that expensive thick cut applewood smoked bacon you can get at Whole Foods or Fresh Market, but ten times better. It's really meaty, and the hickory smoke is amazing. This stuff smells delicious before you even start cooking it. Open up the white butcher paper and the whole kitchen already smells good.


Foodies and chefs are obsessed with it. They ship bacon all over the country. But not many make it to their actual store. It's staffed by a crew of Tennessee good ol' boys who will answer any question with a smile. And...it's cheap. It's really a great deal. We got 2 lb of fresh cut slab bacon for less than $8. (They'll ship 4 lb of it for $21.) Yet another perk of living in Knoxville.

We finished out the order with 3 huge, beautiful NY Strip steaks, one of which he gave to us for free for some reason. Plus a little packet of Benton's prosciutto. "What? Rednecks in the holler making prosciutto? How do they even know what that is? Only Italians can make prosciutto." Don't underestimate a man who smokes pork for a living. It's effin' delicious.