There are fruit and vegetable farms, farms that raise pastured pork and beef, egg farms, and dairy farms…..but a pizza farm? Yes, In Tipton County, Tennessee, west of Covington, there is actually a pizza farm! West Tennessee residents of a certain age probably remember Turner Farms Quality Checked Milk, which was the biggest local milk brand in Memphis and other parts of the Mid-South. The Turner dairy farm was located outside of Covington, but eventually the milk brand was sold to Prairie Farms, an out-of-state conglomerate. But the Turner Farm remains,, functioning these days as an angus beef farm, with its store selling steaks, burgers, pork products, eggs and honey.
But on Saturdays, the farm becomes a restaurant, offering pizzas cooked in a wood-burning oven attached to a food truck. The pizzas feature local Turner Farm meat products, but despite the truck kitchen, guest can dine in a spacious and comfortable dining area complete with a big-screen TV for the Saturday football games. Decorative lighting fixtures are made out of found items like old mattress coils, and seats are church pews, made more comfortable with plush pillows.
Visiting the Turner Angus Pizza Farm is not necessarily a simple matter. Pizzas are only served on Saturdays, beginning at 4 PM, and reservations are required, so that the space does not become crowded. Pizzas and dessert pizzas are fairly expensive, but the quality is extremely high. Water and sweetened and unsweetened ice tea are free for the taking, while sodas are a dollar and a half. On the half hour, tours of the farm on a trailer pulled by a tractor are offered. Each tour can accommodate seven people.
There are perhaps other places to get pizza, but it is hard to find pizzas better than the ones at Turner Farms. And the experience of driving a few miles out into the country from Covington and spending a pleasant evening at the farm to enjoy dinner is not to be missed. An after-dinner visit to the farm store is recommended. There are all kinds of steaks, burgers, pork products, honey and eggs to take home, as well as T-shirts and other local gift items and products.
Turner Angus Pizza Farm
297 Leighs Chapel Road
Covington, TN 38019
(901) 351-1355