The Most Delectable Southern in Memphis

Jay's Family Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.8 (100) • $

"Jay's Family Restaurant is a great option for a meal. I stopped in here for breakfast and not only was the food very good and fairly priced, but the service was also personable and professional.Jay's Family Restaurant has an ambiance like many other down-home southern casual restaurants. It is comfortable and inviting. As I said, Jay's Family Restaurant is a great option for breakfast. I met a client here for a breakfast meeting and it was definitely a great choice. I would definitely recommend here."

The Pond

★★★★☆ 4.1 (45) • $$

"This is southern cooking at its best when it comes to "out of the pond food." We had shrimp, catfish and frog legs. All were the best we've had in a long long while. But the real surprise treat was the regular side fixins! The hush puppies and white beans they bring out were soooooo good. Can't wait to come back."

Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen

★★★☆☆ 2.9 (504) • $$

"Just okay. The place wasn't very busy and it took longer than expected for food to arrive. With a limited family style meal, I would have expected more preparation. We enjoyed the fried okra, fried chicken, biscuits, and the meatloaf. However the dumplings were not good, the collard greens were really salty. We had a vegetarian friend with us and even the vegetable sides had bacon. It's too bad they don't allow boxes even if you didn't request seconds. There was so much food that went to waste."

Doll's Family Cafe

★★★★☆ 4.2 (49)

"7.30 was my very 1st time here. I had heard about it from acquaintances. I personally don't prefer to cook on Fridays or Saturdays so I decided to give them a try. It was good. I am picky about my soul food being from Memphis. I had the Fried chicken, cabbage and Mac n cheese. I got my husband the ribs, cabbage and Mac and cheese. He was at work so I took him his food and told him to let me know how it was. The plate was gone within 5 minutes of me dropping it off. Will definitely keep them in my food arsenal."

Abbay's - Cordova

★★★☆☆ 3.1 (71) • $

"I enjoy going to Abbay's because it's fast food without having the "burgers and fries" menu selections. I get hamburger steak or meatloaf and the food typically tastes good."

The Chicken Coop

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (32) • $

"Fast service. It was clean. Looked for chicken gizzards everywhere and they had them and they were pretty good. I just happened to see it because it's tucked away by a dentist's office."

Signature Smokehouse

★★★★★ 5 (2)

"This is a great place to eat . Dwayne serves Breakfast & Lunch M-Saturday , has great pulled pork bbq , baby back ribs & other daily specials . I recommend it to anyone looking for great bbq !!!"

Homestead Cafe

★★★★★ 4.9 (11) • $

"I absolutely love this place! I love comfort food. I get tired of having fast food or Mexican food. Their poppyseed casserole is amazing! You have to go when they start serving lunch, don't go at 1 because they will be sold out of food. It's that good."

Raven and Lily restaurant

★★★★☆ 4.3 (276) • $$

"I can't believe I haven't discovered this gem until now! After a few lackluster experiences at Edge Alley, I was on the lookout for a new brunch spot and decided to give Raven & Lily a try after a friend recommended it. We were promptly seated after arriving on an early Saturday morning. Here's what we ordered:Brioche Cinnamon Roll: A delightfully dense treat with a generous burst of cinnamon flavor.Pork Belly: Crispy and literally melts in your mouth.Chicken & Biscuits: Incredibly tender chicken paired with amazing biscuits.Shrimp & Grits: A plate bursting with rich and savory flavors.Overall, this was a great experience and Raven & Lily has quickly become our favorite brunch spot in Memphis! I'm also eager to explore their dinner menu at some point. Highly recommended!"

Southern Social

★★★★★ 4.6 (697) • $$$

"I love this place for a special occasion dinner. Their service is always top notch. If you are celebrating something when you make your reservation, they will customize the menu to say Happy Birthday or Anniversary. It is one of my top special occasion restaurants."

The Country Boy

★★★★☆ 3.7 (132) • $

"If you take nothing else from this review, remember these 2 words: Sausage Gravy. I secretly want to work here because the team is so warm, friendly & fun. Alas, it IS where I work sometimes when I need a break from remote work. With my laptop & choices of biscuits, sausage gravy, eggs (try the kitchen sink omelette), pancakes, avo toast, burgers & more, I never leave hungry & look forward to the next item I'll try on the menu. Congrats for reviving an absolute treasure in Leipers Fork."See you tomorrow!""

Abner's Famous Chicken

★★★★☆ 3.6 (16)

"Location: Crosstown Concourse. Might be being a bit generous giving  5 stars but didn't want to back all the way down to 4 stars as this is the only time I have been here.  I'll start with the good stuff. This is a chicken place and the chicken tenders were GREAT! Big pieces of tender, juicy chicken, nice and hot, with a crispy breading  Ratio of breading to chicken is great, not too much breading. Flavorful enough to eat without a dipping sauce (but I'm not a psychopath so of course I had sauces).  The house made chips were also a win.  They were thin and crunchy, hot, and clearly had not been sitting around waiting for an order.   Oh yeah, the buttered Texas toast was yummy too.  I mean, can you really go wrong there?Now for the not so great.  The bacon ranch pasta salad I selected as a side had no bacon or ranch flavor and tasted like mayonnaise on pasta. The slaw was equally disappointing and tasted like shredded cabbage with no dressing.  The sauces for the tenders were good, but I wouldn't classify them as special or great.  A place that specializes in  chicken tenders should have amazing sauces in my opinion.  The house sauce was a mayo base and like the pasta salad had  too much mayo flavor, not enough any other flavor.  The other 2 sauces I had were blue cheese and spicy buffalo.  Hard to go wrong with those. Service was quick.  The staff was friendly and attentive.  I really wanted to love this place but I'm not there after this one visit.  I'm going to give it another try sometime.  The salad with chicken tenders that I spotted as I was leaving looked very good and will be my reason for my next visit to Abner's."

Silver Sands Cafe

★★★★☆ 4 (59) • $

"I've never heard of Silver Sands despite the popularity for decades but after mentioning that I'm a big-time lover of country cooking, my coworker said I should go with him. I finally gave in and told him I'd try it. My only regret is that I didn't try it sooner.Silver Sands isn't exactly where I would go for a meal. I guess you could say I'm never really in that part of town and even if I was, I would have overlooked it. It is a hole-in-the-wall and I'm ashamed because I know just as well as any foodie that hole-in-the-wall establishments have some of the best food.They were serving oxtails the day I went and I *LOVE* oxtails. Silver Sands has a wide variety of foods they serve plus daily specials. I came really close to wanting to try the pork chops or fried chicken but the fact that I haven't had oxtails since I went to a Jamaican restaurant in Lavergne made me choose what I came for. I got the mac & cheese (supposedly legendary) and the turnip greens. I was asked when ordering if I wanted a flat(?) or a hot water. I had no clue what she was talking about, so I just said a flat. What it ended up being is this round cornbread-type cake. I don't know why it's called what it's called and I'm quite curious what a "hot water" tastes like.Anyway, the oxtails were AMAZING. You get a small and large oxtail and a large spoonful of the gravy (I think it's more like a stew). I dipped my flat cornbread in it until it was gone and then I ate all of it with a spoon. The oxtail was meaty and rich, and the gravy was the perfect blend of savory and salty. The mac and cheese was creamy and had a nice tang to it (I read while waiting it had Velveeta cheese in it). Say what you will about American cheese, sometimes it's the best cheese in certain dishes. The turnip greens were fantastic, not at all bitter and I didn't even need pepper vinegar (a condiment I usually pair with it).Silver Sands is awesome and I'm sad I haven't been there sooner. It is a bit pricey (oxtails is one of the most expensive) but I want to go back and try their other stuff too."

Peggy's Heavenly Home Cooking

★★★★☆ 4.2 (93) • $

"Very good country/sould food. Lima beans were delicious as was the chopped steak! Staff was nice."

Jim 'N Nick's Bar-B-Q

★★★★☆ 3.6 (297) • $$

"Memphis is known for their BBQ so was told this is a good place to go for good bbq and southern side. The atmosphere and decor was lovely clean and family friendly, was seated right away the hostess was very polite service was great, food was ribs were tender and meaty, peas was made like I would have done, coleslaw was good delivered fast but hot The Food was very good. I highly recommend"

Ed's Fish House

★★★★☆ 4.1 (59) • $

Flying Fish

★★★★☆ 3.9 (596) • $$

"I have been to Flying Fish in Bentonville, AR and had a great time but the experience in Memphis seemed more fun and memorable. Maybe it's because I was dining with someone who loves food adventures just as much as I do.I love they have the flying fish mounted on the walls that helps create a very casual and carefree ambience. I would not come here for an intimate date but for fun, casual dining experience with family or friends, a group, or with someone that loves Cajun comfort food.There's a cost of flow of people aka line worthy restaurant. We luckily arrived before the dinner rush, which meant we had a smaller line to wait. After we ordered food and the cashier gave us a buzzer from when the food is ready, but the wait was short. The employees were very helpful and generous in keeping customers happy with the condiments for everyone's meal and willingness to help a customer choose what to get off their menu.I had ordered and shared the following items and honestly, we could have purchased more but we were too happy with what we had ordered. Next time, we'll order more and perhaps try other options.- Cajun Platter( served with rice, fried gator, crawfish jambalaya, and 2 pairs of frog legs),Before tonight, my wife swore that she did not like frog legs due to her belief. it was too much work for the amount of meat on the bones. Now, she believes that frog legs are pretty yummy with the legs here being tender and fall off the bone delish. The fried gator was so tender and delicious, and we savored every bite. We did add hot sauce to our crawfish jambalaya because it enhanced the deliciousness and we try not to eat it too fast to avoid the disappointment of it being gone.- Additional items/ sides( coleslaw, hush puppies, and pickled green tomatoesWe enjoyed each of our sides, but coleslaw was a little bland in our opinion. We needed to add salt and pepper to give it a little umph."

Cedar Landing

★★★★☆ 3.7 (35) • $$$

"The service was good and the food was pretty typical. I ordered my ribeye medium rare but it was so thin it was done all the way. It tasted good but was very thin. The baked potato was normal. My husbands was actually a little thicker cause he did get the larger portion. It was ok and the only place open."

Blues Corner Cafe

★★★★★ 4.7 (19) • $

"Awesome southern food. Love the catfish and rib plates. The green salad was fantastic. Fried okra was lightly breaded which really brought out the taste of the okra. The potato salad was great too. Friendly owner!"

Circa

★★★★☆ 4.3 (511) • $$

"Great, relaxing environment and great food to match. I love the inside of this place, it's just simple and welcoming in the best way possible. The menu seems to be semi-rotational and seasonal, which some people love and some people don't. The burger with pork belly was the show-stopper. If you're a burger enthusiast, this is a must. The pork belly appetizer was also great, it's more of a "hash" with how small the pork belly is diced up and presented. I wish the pieces were a little bigger, it's hard to get everything in one bite. The appetizers were also great, unfortunately the desserts were just a few notches above average. Staff is friendly but hit or miss with attentiveness. All to be said, I will be back and if I had a relative or friend in town who was looking for a nice meal without fighting the tourists, I would take them here."

Sunflower Cafe and Grill

★★★★☆ 4.1 (8)

"Home cooking at its finest. Places like this are hard. Meat and three for $7.50 with tax. A plate FULL of food. Deserts are $2 or substitute a veggie for cobbler The food is seasoned and cooked like home. Not just warmed up canned food. I loved it and will 100% be back."

Victoria's Restaurant & Bakery

★★★★☆ 4 (44) • $

"Such a friendly staff! Food is very good. Plenty of options. (From main course to side items cold and hot) You can order full cakes and pies as well. Cafeteria style dining. Very hometown feel to it. Would definitely recommend. Prices are more than reasonable."

Homeside Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.8 (18)

"To be honest I just came here to take the ham radio license test and did not plan to eat, but when I saw the offerings on the menu and how cheap they were I had to indulge. Honestly my expectations for a five dollar fish sandwich weren't very high but I was sorely mistaken because they delivered. The fish was perfectly cooked and fluffy and delicious, the bun and toppings were fresh and the tater tot's were hot out of the fryer. The food didn't take very long to get and I will definitely be back"

Vernon's Smokehouse

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (95) • $$

"Visiting Graceland has become an annual event in my household and we always make Vernon's our lunch spot in the middle of our day of touring. It's set up in a cafeteria-style, where you grab a tray, order, and your plate is made. We always get the BBQ Sampler which means you get one rib, one smoked chicken wing, smoked brisket, and pulled pork, plus 2 sides, and roll or cornbread. Their desserts are the standard Southern style choices like pecan pie, apple pie, peach and cherry cobblers, and cheesecake. Bonus, they also serve Coke products, with my favorite, Coke Zero. Employees are friendly enough and of course, Elvis concerts are playing on the tv screens, which makes it even more awesome when you're eating such wonderful bbq in the middle of one of the happiest places on earth (if you're an Elvis fan). If I lived locally, I would come here all the time, even if not visiting Graceland. Highly recommend!"

Prince's Hot Chicken

★★★★☆ 3.6 (354) • $$

"Prince's Hot Chicken is hands down the best spot for some incredible spicy chicken! From the moment we walked in, the atmosphere was warm and inviting. The staff here are genuinely friendly and go out of their way to make you feel at home. They even come up to your table to chat, making the experience feel personal and welcoming. The chicken is nothing short of amazing--perfectly crispy, incredibly flavorful, and with just the right amount of heat to satisfy spice lovers. Every bite is packed with deliciousness that leaves you craving more.We ordered the sweet heat chicken sandwich which is probably my new go to when I don't order their medium tenders. Definitely be aware that they are spicy, medium/mild still has a solid kick to it so I can't imagine how spicy the hotter flavors are. But the chicken is always moist, perfectly crunchy, and packs a spicy punch in the best way. The fries are seasoned well just always order them on the well done side for a great crispy fry. If you're looking for a place with great food and even better service, Prince's Hot Chicken is the place to be. It's a must-visit for anyone who loves good food and great company. Can't wait to come back!"

Oaklawn Southern Dining

★★★★★ 4.9 (33) • $$$

"What an amazing dining gem! We were celebrating birthdays and they provided an extra special experience. The service and food were terrific."

Big Bad Breakfast - Spring Hill

★★★★☆ 3.6 (142) • $$

"Great place to grab a good, hearty breakfast. I had the ham and cheese omelet with a side of tossed greens. An interesting combination for a breakfast, next time I may substitute something more traditional. Good service and a big bright ambiance."

Gracie's Kitchen

★★★★☆ 4.1 (72)

"I love this place for a quick pick up and go. They have a hot bar kind of like cafeteria style and their menu changes daily. Today they had Turkey legs and dressing but I went for the baked chicken. On fridays they have catfish and that is pretty good as well. Whenever, you're in the mood for some soul food swing by and grab you a plate. Their cornbread is the best! The wait isn't that long but they are pretty busy during lunch. They are quick and prompt though. I've enjoyed both meals that I have had here and would recommend to anyone."

Umphy's

★★★★★ 4.8 (11)

"Driving through, eclipse day, yelped a breakfast place and landed on Umphy - remarkable, outstanding and down right freaking amazing is the urban dictionary for their name. Must - cinnamon roll warm, moist, sweet and well portioned cinnamon and glaze! Chicken biscuits were good. The platter with cooked eggs was delicious and you can't beat the reasonable prices."

Old Glory

★★★★☆ 4.2 (45) • $

"I love it here. I miss my hometown diner, and in the mornings, this is a great substitute. You pick where you want to sit, and the servers were both lovely ladies who clearly know every regular in there. They're the kind of ladies that call everyone "honey" and just make you feel at home. It's definitely "home-y" feeling with their Americana wall decor and old school wallpaper along the ceiling. I got the Old Glory's Breakfast platter so I could have grits, which I have t had in a few years. It was good, as expected, and the coffee was classic diner coffee. I think they're more of a Meat & 3, but I appreciate the all day breakfast!"

Belle Meade Meat and Three

★★★★☆ 3.9 (40)

"Our group was touring the Plantation, and our original plan was to have lunch elsewhere. However, the group leaders made a last-minute decision for us to have lunch at Meat and Three, Good call!The lunch options include salad options that have been pre-packaged or a choice of a meat and up to three sides (hence the name). I went the baked ham that they carved in front of me with a very generous portion, plus two sides from a nice variety of options. All of the employees were very polite and efficient. On this spring day, we had dining options inside or on their porch, which was very pleasant.Great flavor in the ham, the corn pudding, and the macaroni and cheese. So glad that we dined there instead of some fast food place further down the interstate,"

Swett's Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4 (183) • $$

"I was unimpressed with this place.On my second trip out to Nashville we decided to grab something to eat on the way to our hotel. My husband wanted southern food cafeteria style and found Swett's on Yelp. Upon arriving I liked that they had lots of choices. I asked for grilled pork chop but the lady ended up giving me fried instead. I got my pork chop with green beans and yams. The pork chop ended up being small and very dry. Like hard-to-swallow-DRY. I had to drink lots of water to not choke. The green beans was my favorite thing I ate. The yams were very greasy. The sweet corn bread I got with my meal was also dry AF. It was a disappointing meal.My husband got their fried chicken with greens and mac n cheese. He also got a berry cobbler on the side. The fried chicken was okay. The greens and mac n cheese were cool. The cobbler was gross. It lacked flavor and wasn't very sweet at all. It had too much thickening agent in it. Since it is cafeteria style there wasn't really any service besides them serving the food at the beginning. I wouldn't say they were friendly either. They just ask what you want and move you along the line. It didn't seem like they wanted to answer any questions. However, Swett's supposedly pride themselves on being around for awhile and having all sorts of "popular" people dine prior. I think its loosing its luster. Or did we come on an off day? Not sure but I don't think we will be returning."

Tin Lizzie Cafe

★★★★☆ 3.7 (76) • $

"Food is awesome. I recommend the hamburger steak with potatoes and gravy. Very friendly service. Just an overall great experience."

City House

★★★★☆ 3.9 (821) • $$

"Wonderful place!! Food is delicious and the service excellent. Laid back vibe - can't wait to go back. Recommend reservation. Limited parking. We ubered"

Cindy's Place

★★★★☆ 4 (6) • $

"I love Cindy's Place. They are cash only and only opened a few hours a day, Monday-Friday. However, anytime I am able to stop in, I enjoy the food. You get one meat and three veggies, and they are all wonderful. My go-to is turkey and dressing with cranberry sauce, turnip greens, mashed potatoes with gravy, and Mac and cheese. For dessert, I add a Butter Roll that is always perfect. You cannot go wrong with a plate lunch from Cindy's!"