Southern restaurants in northwest Arkansas? (Little Rock, Fort Smith: casino, foods, buffets)

[Cali BassMan]

The Monte Ne Inn has awesome fried chicken served family style.
No menus, just sit down and the start bringing out the fixins

[Bass&Catfish2008]

A & Q Chicken House is top-shelf! Love that place.

I'm a proud Okie, but even I can admit the best chicken I've ever put in my mouth is A & Q's pan-friend boneless. My elderly daddy claims that there is a place just as good in Central Oklahoma, but I'll believe it when I see it (or in this case, taste it).

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Bass&Catfish2008

A & Q Chicken House is top-shelf! Love that place.

I'm a proud Okie, but even I can admit the best chicken I've ever put in my mouth is A & Q's pan-friend boneless. My elderly daddy claims that there is a place just as good in Central Oklahoma, but I'll believe it when I see it (or in this case, taste it).

don't know why, but pan fried boneless doesn't seem like real southern fried chicken to me: the pan fried part is fine, but not the boneless. My grandma born and raised in KY would turn over in her grave if someone served fired chicken without bones.

[North Pulaski Player]

Originally Posted by nmnita

don't know why, but pan fried boneless doesn't seem like real southern fried chicken to me: the pan fried part is fine, but not the boneless. My grandma born and raised in KY would turn over in her grave if someone served fired chicken without bones.

Kentucky fries chicken?

[jgn2013]

It really depends on what is "Southern." Okra, black eyed peas, yams...basically food with strong African roots versus chicken fried steak with white gravy-type southern.

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by Cali BassMan

The Monte Ne Inn has awesome fried chicken served family style.
No menus, just sit down and the start bringing out the fixins

We have lots of places like that in Georgia.

Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room

http://www.dillardhouse.com/

The Smith House | Family Dining, Lodging and Country Store

Home Page - Buckners-Family-Restaurant

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by North Pulaski Player

Kentucky fries chicken?

nope, old fashion southern fried chicken, but yes, Ky fried with the bones only would come close.

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by MOKAN

I'm also curious if fast food and chain restaurant menus reflect the fact they're in Arkansas or in the South in anyway.

-MOKAN

I've never really noticed a menu difference in the south when it comes to fast food places. Sweet tea might be the one thing. Although it's not hard to find elswhere, sweet tea is more readily available down south, and sometimes is the only option to my dismay.

[MOKAN]

Originally Posted by northbound74

I've never really noticed a menu difference in the south when it comes to fast food places. Sweet tea might be the one thing. Although it's not hard to find elswhere, sweet tea is more readily available down south, and sometimes is the only option to my dismay.

I've seen indications online that Church's Chicken and Popeye's at one time had collard greens, either that or they only do at certain locations. I also saw some article that talked about KFC introducing new items, including collard greens. None of those places websites has anything about that though.

-

To this thread in general:

I've never lived outside of Missouri, eastern Oklahoma, or the Kansas City area. Now I'm wondering if Kansas City and all of Missouri has just as much "Southern" food as Arkansas. In addition to the places being mentioned here, I've looked at a few menus from restaurants in Little Rock and Fort Smith just to see. Most of the food I'm seeing referred to as Southern is abundant in or around Kansas City. Not having lived in or spent much time in "more" Midwestern states like Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, etc., I just have no idea how strong KC's Southern influence is regarding food. If stuff like fried chicken, chicken fried steak, etc. aren't pretty common, I would find that weird, because I've always been used to it. I also have the feeling the line might be blurred as to what's considered Southern. But sweet tea does seem to be lacking in KC. Greens and the tomatoes and okra thing both definitely seem to be lacking, except at "soul food"-specific (black) restaurants or a few buffets (some of the casinos, Golden Corral). But in reality I have no idea how common those things are at restaurants in even the deep South. Grits for the most part are lacking in KC, as far as I can tell.

Anyway, Midwesterners, at least in Kansas City, would have you believe greens are a black-specific thing because they're associated with "soul food". In the South, are they specifically a black thing? Aren't they just a Southern thing in general? Can anybody answer this?

Another thing I'd like to say is that my experience having grown up and lived in Kansas City most of my life shows that blacks seem to have held onto their Southern heritage, including food, much better than white Southerners who moved to the Midwest. I'm not exactly sure why that is, but I have a few ideas.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by MOKAN

I've seen indications online that Church's Chicken and Popeye's at one time had collard greens, either that or they only do at certain locations. I also saw some article that talked about KFC introducing new items, including collard greens. None of those places websites has anything about that though.

-

To this thread in general:

I've never lived outside of Missouri, eastern Oklahoma, or the Kansas City area. Now I'm wondering if Kansas City and all of Missouri has just as much "Southern" food as Arkansas. In addition to the places being mentioned here, I've looked at a few menus from restaurants in Little Rock and Fort Smith just to see. Most of the food I'm seeing referred to as Southern is abundant in or around Kansas City. Not having lived in or spent much time in "more" Midwestern states like Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, etc., I just have no idea how strong KC's Southern influence is regarding food. If stuff like fried chicken, chicken fried steak, etc. aren't pretty common, I would find that weird, because I've always been used to it. I also have the feeling the line might be blurred as to what's considered Southern. But sweet tea does seem to be lacking in KC. Greens and the tomatoes and okra thing both definitely seem to be lacking, except at "soul food"-specific (black) restaurants or a few buffets (some of the casinos, Golden Corral). But in reality I have no idea how common those things are at restaurants in even the deep South. Grits for the most part are lacking in KC, as far as I can tell.

Anyway, Midwesterners, at least in Kansas City, would have you believe greens are a black-specific thing because they're associated with "soul food". In the South, are they specifically a black thing? Aren't they just a Southern thing in general? Can anybody answer this?

Another thing I'd like to say is that my experience having grown up and lived in Kansas City most of my life shows that blacks seem to have held onto their Southern heritage, including food, much better than white Southerners who moved to the Midwest. I'm not exactly sure why that is, but I have a few ideas.

I can't say for certain, but we have eaten at Popeye's in VA, NM, and here as well as Alabama. I never saw collard greens on the menu. I don't know about KFC, as most of them in our immediate area and in NM have gone out of business. I have rarely eaten at a Church's. I know a lot of the places we ate in VA, even NO. VA did have black eyed peas and collard greens on the menu, but I haven't seen black eyed peas on menus here either. Maybe they are more of a southern dish along the Atlantic coast?