Evelyn Couch, a repressed, middle-aged housewife with an overeating problem, travels with her husband, Ed, to Rose Hills Convalescent Home in Whistle Stop, Alabama. When Ed’s Aunt Vesta runs Evelyn out of her room, she goes to a common area and meets a sprightly eighty-two-year-old named “Ninny” Threadgoode. Ninny came to Rose Hills with her friend, Mrs. Otis, but as soon as Otis is settled, she will return home. Launching into a story about her sister-in-law, Imogene Louise “Idgie” Threadgoode, Ninny relates that Idgie was once arrested for the murder of a man named Frank Bennett. Evelyn is enthralled by Ninny’s storytelling, and over time, she continues to visit to hear more about Idgie. Ninny begins a story about when Idgie was a young tomboy: At her sister’s wedding, Idgie reluctantly wears a dress but takes it off when her younger brother, Julian, teases her. Idgie’s dashing older brother, Buddy, finds her in a tree house and talks her down. Later, Idgie spends time with Buddy and his girl friend, Ruth Jamison. As they walk near the train tracks, Ruth’s hat flies off her head, and Buddy goes to retrieve it. His foot gets stuck in the tracks, and Idgie and Ruth witness as a train runs him over. Idgie is inconsolable, and over the next few years, spends most of her time in the woods, cut off from society. Ruth Jamison moves away, but Idgie’s mother persuades her to return one summer to coax Idgie out of reclusion. Initially standoffish, Idgie warms to Ruth, and the two develop a deep bond. Idgie, a rebellious spirit who sometimes refers to herself as “Towanda, the amazing Amazon woman,” broadens Ruth’s horizons by teaching her how to play poker and getting her drunk at a local saloon. One day, she takes Ruth to a tree where she collects honey from an active beehive. Ruth is amazed and nicknames Idgie “the Bee Charmer.” At the end of the summer, Ruth returns to Valdosta, Georgia, where she is set to marry Frank Bennett. Idgie is devastated by her friend’s departure, and instead of attending her wedding, she observes it from afar. Sometime later, Idgie visits Ruth and discovers she is being beaten by her new husband. Idgie tries to intervene, but Ruth forces her to leave. Eventually, Idgie and her mother receive a letter from Ruth, alerting them that her mother has died. Idgie returns to Valdosta, where a grieving Ruth confesses she is pregnant. With help from her younger brother, Julian, and their African American servant, “Big George,” Idgie helps Ruth move out. As they are about to leave, Frank Bennett returns home. Julian Threadgoode orders him to let Ruth go, or face the wrath of Big George. Bennett pushes Ruth down the stairs, and Idgie warns she will kill him if he ever touches Ruth again. Months later, Ruth gives birth to a boy named Buddy, Jr. She and Idgie open the Whistle Stop Café, where Big George and his mother, Sipsey, work as cooks. Locals frequent the café, which quickly becomes known for its barbecue and fried green tomatoes. Grady, the town sheriff who has tried to woo Idgie, to no avail, warns her to stop serving African Americans in the front of the restaurant. She ignores his request, granting the same kindness to all of her customers, including Smokey Lonesome, an alcoholic hobo. Ruth is touched by Idgie’s inclusiveness and adopts the same attitude. One night, Ku Klux Klansmen, led by Frank Bennett, attack Big George. Grady stops them outside the cafe, and Idgie tends to Big George’s wounds. Before leaving town, Bennett breaks into the Threadgoode home, where Ruth lives with her baby. She blocks him from seeing Buddy, Jr., but Bennett threatens to come back. On the night of the “Town Follies” show, he returns. However, Ruth is away at a church revival led by Reverend Herbert Scroggins. At the café, Sipsey babysits Buddy, Jr. Bennett drunkenly barges in, knocks Sipsey in the head with a shotgun, and takes the baby. Smokey Lonesome stops Bennett outside his car, but Bennett punches him. Smokey observes as Bennett is hit from behind and falls to the ground. The next day, Big George butchers and grills large pieces of meat as Curtis Smoote, a police detective from Georgia, arrives at the café. Smoote, who is aware that Idgie once threatened to kill Bennett, suspects her of murder, but Idgie denies any involvement with Bennett’s disappearance. Smoote eats several plates of barbecue, and leaves. In the present, Ninny Threadgoode suggests Evelyn Couch’s recent mood swings might be due to menopause. Under Ninny’s positive influence, Evelyn begins eating healthier, exercising, and selling cosmetics for Mary Kay. Her husband, Ed, is disturbed by her sudden personality change. No longer a “doormat,” Evelyn acts out in a grocery store parking lot when two young women “steal” the parking spot she is waiting for. After the girls walk into the store, Evelyn runs into their car six times, shouting “Towanda!” Later, Ed reprimands her and worries that she has gone crazy. At Rose Hills, Evelyn learns from Ninny’s family friend, Sue Otis, that Ninny’s house has been condemned and torn down. However, no one has broken the bad news to Ninny, whose eighty-third birthday is approaching. Over Evelyn’s next few visits, Ninny finishes the story of Idgie Threadgoode: Five years after Frank Bennett’s disappearance, Curtis Smoote continues to investigate. Bennett’s car is finally discovered in a river, and Idgie and Big George are arrested for his murder. At their trial, Ruth testifies that she left Frank Bennett to live with Idgie because Idgie is her best friend and she loves her. Swearing on his own Bible, Reverend Scroggins testifies that Idgie and Big George were at his church revival the weekend of Bennett’s disappearance. Trusting the reverend, and knowing Bennett was a reckless alcoholic, the judge determines his death must have been accidental and dismisses the case. Afterward, Idgie learns that Scroggins’s “Bible” was actually a copy of Moby Dick. Ruth Bennett suddenly falls ill. A doctor diagnoses her with cancer and gives her only two weeks to live. Idgie consoles Ruth’s son, Buddy, Jr., who recently lost his arm in a train accident. Before she dies, Ruth urges Idgie to be good to herself and settle down with someone. Recalling Ruth’s funeral, Ninny tells Evelyn that everyone was in love with her, even Smokey Lonesome, whose only possession at the time of his death was a picture of Ruth. Evelyn tells Ed she wants Ninny to move in with them, and ignores him when he tells her no. She goes to Rose Hills but finds Ninny’s room empty. A nurse mistakenly tells her Ninny has died, and Evelyn weeps. However, another nurse informs her that Mrs. Otis was the one who died, and Ninny took a taxi home. Evelyn finds Ninny by the empty lot where her house used to be. She persuades Ninny to come live with her and Ed. They wander toward a cemetery, where Ninny reveals that Big George’s mother, Sipsey, was Frank Bennett’s killer. To cover up the murder, Idgie told Big George to barbecue Bennett’s body, and the barbecue was served to Curtis Smoote the next day. It feels good for Ninny to finally tell the truth. They walk past Ruth’s grave, and Evelyn sees a fresh jar of honey with a note from “the Bee Charmer.” Evelyn smiles as she realizes that Ninny is actually Idgie Threadgoode herself.