Best Soul Food and Southern Cooking in Fayetteville, NC
Whether it's Southern fried chicken, crispy pork chops, fried green tomatoes, or fried catfish, if you are looking for good Southern cooking and soul food in Fayetteville, you are in for a treat with our selection of the best soul food restaurants in Fayetteville.
Soul Food History
Soul food came out of the South. This was the food consumed by enslaved people who were given the most undesirable cuts of meat. This included the tails of oxen and cows along with ribs from pigs. They had to grow their own crops or forage for food. But they were creative, combining their knowledge of West African cooking with the food available to them.
They slow-cooked meat in stews over open fires. They also slow-cooked pork ribs on a grill over the fires, creating the barbecue technique. The added spices and sauces were made from whatever food and herbs were available. They added okra, collard, and mustard greens to their diets. Many women who worked in kitchens created pies from sweet potatoes, pecans, other nuts, and seeds.
Hush puppies, fried cornmeal dumplings, possibly evolved from the African dish of fritters made from black-eyed peas. The widely told story about hush puppies comes from the Carolinas. Cooks threw the small dumplings to barking hunting dogs to keep them quiet. This soul food tradition, born from enslavement, developed into one of the most popular, signature cuisines in the U.S. The term "soul food" was not used to describe this cooking style until the 1960s, although it is a major part of Southern cooking.
Flavors
Flavors Restaurant and Lounge is a family-owned restaurant where you can find oxtails simmered in savory gravy, pork chops, pig's feet, crawfish, chitlins, and even fried alligator. Add Caribbean Jerk Wings, Gumbo, and Po-boy sandwiches to the menu along with fish and shrimp. Friday's specialty is all-you-can-eat fish and shrimp.
Side dishes include collard greens, cornbread, and fried okra. Finish with Sweet Potato Pie or Peach Cobbler. This restaurant features a unique blend of Southern hospitality and comfort food.
More Flavors
One restaurant is not enough for everyone who wants to experience the best soul food in Fayetteville. More Flavors offers the same authentic menu, including oxtails, catfish, and other specialties from the original Flavors. Both restaurants offer hamburgers and nachos, as well as macaroni and cheese, along with regional dishes.
More Flavors also offers Karaoke on Sundays.
Barbara Ann's Southern Fried Chicken
"A Little Soul on the Go!" is the theme of this rolling restaurant. Barbara Ann's Southern Fried Chicken has elevated food truck food to a new level. This restaurant on wheels serves Fayetteville and Cumberland County from the Hope Mills area with authentic Southern meals.
The menu includes their signature fried chicken along with turkey barbecue, red velvet waffles, white and dark meat plates, barbecue sandwiches, gizzards, and liver plates. Add baked beans, green beans, potato salad, coleslaw, and baked macaroni and cheese. Enjoy banana pudding for dessert.
Barbara Ann's has pickup and delivery for online orders.
Melvins-at-Riverside
Melvins-at-Riverside claims to have the best Southern food in East Fayetteville. The menu was developed around the soulful dishes of Southern cuisine. Food is prepared with respect to tradition.
Appetizers include hush puppies, fried oysters, and fried okra. Melvins serve food in baskets and platters. Each basket is named for a person. Ant's BBQ basket includes a half or full rack of ribs or pork chops with side dishes. Sweet Pea desserts include red velvet cake or banana pudding.
Liberty Island Foods
Soul food includes recipes from the Caribbean. People from West Africa were imported to various Caribbean islands to work in the fields and plantations. They brought with them their ability to create food from local sources. LIF, as it is known, brings the vibrant, authentic flavors of the Caribbean to the menu.
Appetizers include fried green plantains and banana fritters, along with spicy jerk wings. Spicy jerk seasoning originated in Jamaica, where the indigenous Taino people and escaped slaves known as Maroons used local peppers and other herbs to rub on wild boar and other animals, including goats, cooked in underground pits. The term "jerk" may come from the technique of poking holes into the meat to penetrate the spices.
The dinner menu includes oxtails, jerk chicken breast, and curry goat. Fish dishes include Caribbean Ackee, Saltfish, Callaloo, shrimp, and red snapper. Liberty Island Foods is located near Fort Bragg.
Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen
This restaurant makes everything from scratch. This includes house-smoked baby-back ribs, which can be paired with their chicken tenders. Cheddar's is also known for its Queso Fries and Santa Fe spinach dip.
This restaurant features grilled chicken pecan salad and baked potato soup, along with homemade chicken pot pie, a Southern specialty. Diners can also order top sirloin or ribeye steak, along with country-fried steak, a true Southern dish.
The Landing Apartments
The Landing Apartments feature one, two, and three-bedroom apartments with open layouts, double galley kitchens, and private patios or balconies. Amenities include a resort-style swimming pool and fitness center. This community is pet-friendly. Contact us today to check availability and schedule a tour.