Munches & Manerva’s Soul Food Cafe

Saw their special for $1 wings and decided to check them out. I ordered about 20 wings just to see. Some wings were smaller than expected but they definitely don't seem like those injected to be bigger. Overall the taste was ok...and just okay. We found ourselves adding seasoning to the wings as they lacked flavor. They did have other lunch specials I found interesting. I was excited to support a black owned business in the area and I'm glad I did. With that said, will I return? That's still unknown.

First, this restaurant has been open for only a month and I'm so glad I found it! We were headed somewhere else and happened to turn around and there it was! Man, I ordered the fried pork chops and they were cooked perfectly! The collard greens had turkey in them just like I like it and the sweet potatoes were the perfect amount of sweet! We also ordered the chicken wings, fried shrimp and fries and it was delicious! For desert they have cheesecake that is very good! You'll want more of that so go ahead and order two! They have ox tails on the menu all the time (and you know everybody doesn't always have them!) Here's the menu and they play good music too!

It was my first time trying this place. I got there one dollar wing special and banana pudding along with the rib tips and Mac , I'm so sorry to say this, but it was not good at all. The wings were all soggy like they they were dipped in warm Greece. It was disgusting. I ate the banana pudding first and upon getting home I had the runs , the cookie in the banana pudding is stale AF and it taste like someone's home refrigerator like you could taste their house , and last but not least the rib tips were hard as hell like they made them a week ago put sauce on them and then sold them , The macaroni and cheese was bomb , I'm not gonna lie. It was so good and cheesy deliciousness, which is where the stars came from. I really wanted to like this place but I will not be returning here. The staff were very nice. My mom enjoyed the food, but my pallet is very sensitive. I ended up going to get Chinese because I couldn't stomach it.

Wow The Jerk Salmon is absolutely incredible a total favorite and the Jerk Sauce yes,yes,yes, please do yourself a favor. Stop at the restaurant. Get that jerk salmon absolutely incredible you'll think me later.

As promised, I'm back with my review of the rib tips plate. They were tender,flavorful& plentiful. The red beans & rice was good but I was head over heels over their sweet potatoes. All that was missing was the crust. SO GOOD! If their sweet potato pie has the same filling, OMG. I think it would be the best I've had in a minute. That's if they will ever actually have it available. Matter of fact I ordered the peach cobbler & sweet potato pie but the desserts were a no-show. I still doubt if I'd return bc of the distance from my house & the other issues mentioned in my previous review. Oh & I forgot to mention they have the nerve to charge an automatic service fee then suggest a tip on top of that for to-go orders. No ma'am, no ham!!!

Let me start this off by saying one thing:25 WHOLE wings, with fries and bread for only $30. That's not drumettes! It's the entire wing! Even the tail part of the wing...or is it the wing part of the wing? Whatever is the proper way to say it, you know what I mean. Drum, flat, and chicken toothpick part comes as 1 wing! That's the daily special. Come order that up before they realize they are under charging for wings. This place is decorated in stylish black and white. I'm not certain if this area has another soul food restaurant, but I'm certain a Chicago-style soul food restaurant is not the normal style we are accustomed to eating. If you ask the owner about the name of the restaurant, she is kind enough to point you to a photo collage and give you a little family history. This is not fast food. They do not have the food under heating lamps. This food is made fresh when you order. If you want your food in 7 minutes or less, do not waste these good people's time! There are a lot of foods to choose from, so study the menu beforehand if possible. One good sign is that they sell their spice mix in store. They have homemade desserts and homemade drinks. The owner told me the "Nightcrawler" drink was a grape lemonade, and I didn't need to hear anything else. There is really good balance with that drink. The drink is not too sweet and not tart at all. A truly beautiful thing for the undecided and the frugal is the mini sample option on the menu. You can have one meat and one side for a low price. If you look at my pictures, you will see well fried items along with seasoning all in the flour. While I was waiting, the owner saw I was struggling with the decision of ordering ox tails and decided to let me have a mini sample of ox tails and red beans and rice. I think I'll order that next time!All in all, if you want to try Chicago inspired soul food, stop by this place. The food and service will make you come back. Just for the record, these people graduated from a food truck to this bricks and sticks store. I thought some menu items and the owner were familiar! Also, they are not open daily. Check with them to know what days they are opened.

I found this place through Instagram - and sadly was disappointed. The gentleman taking the order was nice but blasting an obscene and vulgar Kat Williams's stand up show on the tv was completely out of line. There are no descriptions on the menu - describing how things are prepared. I just ordered the manager special and rib tip/wing dinner. On the rib tip dinner, both the ribs and chicken came drenched in BBQ sauce. If I would have know, would have asked for no sauce, but again no descriptions. I guess I should have asked. Fried chicken has good flavor- but the bbq sauce round it. The fried fish, shrimp, and chicken on the make special were seasoned well. Green beans had way too much garlic and red beans were lacking flavor. Sweet potatoes were good.

Decided to try out the restaurant. There were good things and bad things. Ordering: There is one person who takes the orders and when I went the people in front of me took 10 minutes to order (2 sandwiches). Having a second register would be a greater experience. I placed my order of pork chops with rice and gravy, greens, and sweet potatoes. I also ordered a pork chop and macaroni and cheese sampler. The wait: There were ample places to sit and a tv that during my wait became a Charlie Wilson concert. I noticed the floor was sticky so I am not sure if that is the norm or something that happened earlier and was not cleaned up properly. The orders rolled out one by one in the order they were placed.The food: I had the meal and was excited. The cornbread came with both meals and it was delicious! I like sweet and it definitely was. Next on to the greens, they were not that good to me so I would steer clear. The sweet potatoes were about the same and would also be a pass. The rice and gravy was good but the pork chops were quite tough. My friend had the sampler and said the macaroni and cheese was good and taste homemade. The pork chop was VERY small and also tough.Final thoughts: I am not sure I would go back but was happy it was not all bad.

I really do like this place. I've been here twice. Both times the owners were very kind and accommodating. I like the Kool-Aid. It was real sweet like what I had when I grew up. Lol. The Soul food here is a bit different and is not as Gracie, which is great. If someone had a bad experience, I would really like to see them return to give these folks another chance. The owners are wonderful and kind. Thank you so much because I had a friend visiting from out of town and we went twice. She loved it so much. As a matter of fact, I did too.And no, I would not take Chinese food over this one. I will give them another chance to make it right. I show you they will.

EVERYTHING was excellent! The food, the service, and the ambiance. I stopped there while I was visiting Texas last week and I was BLOWN away! I LOVED this place and can hardly wait until I get a chance to go back!