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Corning’s culinary contributions to Arkansas cuisine come from both the local crappie, bass and catfish found in streams and ponds near town, and from a particular breading manufactured right in town. In this community, also home to the headquarters of Clay County Electric Cooperative, Sam and Sam’s has offered Golden Fry for generations. Now, under new ownership, the company plans to expand.
The business was founded in 1969 by Sam and Nona Belle Banks, who named it for the older Sam and their son, Sam Jr. The latter also worked for the company, as did his wife, Barbara. A fish breading recipe, created by Nona Belle, was a family favorite. Sam Sr. saw potential in the mix and began marketing it, with the family blending cornmeal and spices in their garage. Golden Fry, as it’s still called today, gathered a following in the area.
“They saw a need for fish fry around here,” says Beth Luter, the company’s current president and CEO. “Fishing is such a big part of life in this area.”
The Banks family took Golden Fry on the road. Sam Sr. and Sam Jr. traveled to Memphis and Chicago and established distribution contracts in those cities, quickly securing the product’s strong following in those markets. Over time, the company expanded its product line, adding a spicy version and several seasoning blends.
After Sam Jr.’s death in the 1980s, Barbara Banks eventually became the sole owner, running the business quietly for years with little marketing. “For probably the last 15 years, there was no marketing at all,” Luter said. “They would just sit by the phone and wait for it to ring.”
That changed in September 2025, when Luter and her husband, Evan, purchased the business. Luter, a physical therapist by training, had no background in food manufacturing. Evan, a contractor, had often repaired Sam and Sam’s equipment, starting around 2010. Barbara Banks asked the couple a few times about buying the company. Eventually, the timing — and the price — were right.
“I felt like it’s where God was leading me,” Luter shares. “We prayed hard, heavy and we could see the room for growth.”
Today, Sam and Sam’s offers five products. In addition to Golden Fry, the lineup includes a Hot and Spicy Fish Fry, soon to be rebranded as Cajun Fish Fry.
“It’s not knock‑you‑down hot,” Luter explains. “It’s flavorful. The ‘hot and spicy’ label scares people, and we don’t think it should.”
The company also produces a Fish Seasoning, used both as a stand-alone product and blended into the fry mixes, as well as a Cajun Seasoning. Along the way, Sam and Sam’s bought the rights to Bush Chiles Original Hush Puppy Mix, a regional favorite the company still produces.
Sam and Sam’s breading products are corn‑based, an attribute that has opened new doors when gluten‑free options are in high demand. They’re also MSG‑free and made with natural spices.
“We went down to the (Mississippi) Gulf thinking we’d get a lot of resistance,” Luter says. “The very first place we walked into wanted to buy everything we had.”
Production remains hands‑on, with spices still mixed by hand, ingredients blended on site from cornmeal milled in southeast Missouri and poured into packaging from Arkansas manufacturers. Two of the four-person staff have been with the company for more than a decade. The company currently only operates about 20 hours a week, but puts out an impressive amount of product, with an estimated 25 tons of fish fry shipped out every year.
While right now the product is in Kroger stores in the Memphis-area distribution system, Luter hopes to get the fry mixes and seasonings into more stores and on the menu at more restaurants. She hopes to expand the company’s operations at a slow but steady rate. “We want manageable growth,” Luter states. “We’re not here to come in and change recipes or how things are done. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”
While the recipes will remain the same, there will be some new branding added — new labels that will modernize the look of the products, while educating customers that the breading is versatile enough for chicken, vegetables, pork chops and more. “It’s been marketed for so long as just a fish breading,” Luter says. “But it can do so much more.”
She adds, “There’s no reason to change what’s good. We just want more people to find it.”
Nona Belle’s Golden Fry is available through Kroger stores in the Mid-South and online at NonaBelles.com. Several Arkansas restaurants using Nona Belle’s Golden Fry as their fish breading include Parkview Restaurant in Corning, A&A Grocery in Reyno and Skipper’s Restaurant in Mountain Home.
STORY BY KAT ROBINSON