It’s an open secret in the South that some of the best food can be found at gas stations. In her new photography book “Thank You Please Come Again,” Mississippi native Kate Medley journeys from North Carolina to New Orleans to highlight the unsung heroes serving hot meals at these humble establishments.

Food has been a favorite subject of Medley’s throughout her career as a photojournalist and documentary filmmaker. She spent a decade working with Whole Foods Market on projects showcasing the people and places behind the products sold in their grocery stores, and she is a longtime member of the Southern Foodways Alliance based at the University of Mississippi.

Originally from Jackson, Medley graduated from the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science in Columbus in 1999 and now resides in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina.

Medley has developed a national reputation as a voice of the South and is regularly called upon by media including The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and NPR to contribute portraits that bring current events to life.

Her eye for storytelling through imagery also captured the interest of the Bitter Southerner, a Georgia-based digital magazine that has developed a cult-like following for its incisive perspective on southern identity. In the decade since its website was founded in 2013, the Bitter Southerner has branched into publishing physical books and magazines as well.

“Thank You Please Come Again” is Medley’s first book and contains nearly 200 full-color photographs from her travels, as well as an introduction by fellow Jacksonian Kiese Laymon, the author of the award-winning memoir “Heavy.”

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

How did attending MSMS impact your life’s path?

Despite its focus on math and science, my time at MSMS exposed me to greater study of arts and culture both in and outside of the classroom. I was able to focus on niches in literature (southern authors), history (drilling deeper into Mississippi’s complex past) and political science— topics that were not available to me at my hometown school.

Outside the classroom, I met some of the most creative and inspired students from all over the state and, by way of them, their families and friends. These experiences expanded my thinking and my web of people.

What led you to pursue the subject of southern gas station food for this book?

In my work as a photojournalist, I have spent the last 20 years traveling around the South exploring rural communities and covering news. As part of that, it has become my habit and a tool of exploration to stop at gas stations along the way.

When the lunch cravings set in and the only options are McDonald’s or the local gas station, I’ll choose the latter every time. What hidden gems will I find on the menu, who’s cooking behind the grill, what language are people speaking as they wait, what’s front and center on the community bulletin board?

As a bonus, maybe the food will be delicious— it often is— but regardless, look at all the insight about this place I have gained by stopping.

What were the best things you ate at the gas stations you visited?

Just a small sampling: I ate spicy okra soup at a Senegalese restaurant in the back of a Circle K in North Carolina, a terrific Cajun shrimp banh mi at a Texaco outside of New Orleans, fried alligator at a service station along the Aucilla River in Florida and loads of boiled peanuts in between.

Is there a particular person or subject you’ve covered in your work that you wish got more attention, and why?

I want to shine a light on the workers who sustain us. In this body of work, that is often the cooks in the back of the kitchen who an eater may never see. It is the cashier whose name we never know. It is sometimes the person who cleans up our messes, allowing our day to continue unencumbered.

What is it about the South that you want people to take away from your work?

I hope this work demonstrates that the South is not the monolith it is often portrayed to be. It is not people of one same background with one uniform way of thinking. The South is diverse in nationality, belief, tastes and interests.

Furthermore, this region is growing and changing in ways that give me hope. The people who are featured in this book — who work day in and day out to feed us and sustain us— they give me hope.

Emily Liner is the owner of Friendly City Books, an independent bookstore and press in Columbus.