Old South & Catery — Restaurant in Camden

I love this place! Please allow me to explain the rating I gave. The staff is always friendly and helpful. That was one star. The prices vs what you get are good. That is another star. The food and selection are excellent. That is the third star.

The two missing stars are for the parking situation and the hours. The parking area in and adjacent to Old South is full of pot holes and tank traps. I once saw a Chevy Tahoe in one of the pot holes and the family in it was trying to signal someone to get help so they could get out of there. I called 911 and was told a rescue team would be coming to get them out. I didn't stick around as I was scared of falling into the pot hole with them. I hope they were eventually brought back up on level ground. If you manage to navigate around the tank traps and pot holes, there is rarely a free space in which to park. This is mute testimony as to how good their food is, but frustrating if you are trying to get in and park any closer than the old Skyline Manufacturing plant at the other end of Dicey Creek Rd.

This brings me to the second missing star, the hours. They are only open for full business one day a week, Sunday. I understand this is because they are primarily a catering business which thankfully lets non-catering customers sample their delicacies on Sunday. They also do BBQ carry-out on Wednesdays from 11:00AM-2:00PM. Prior to the Covid plandemic, Old South was open until 6PM on Sundays, giving late risers and others who could not find a place to park, a chance at their delicious buffet. Now, they are only open until 4PM, causing the massive glut of customers and potential customers to be crammed in to a much narrower time frame than before. This exacerbates the already terrible parking situation and likely causes many a potential customer to throw up their hands in disgust and exasperation as they mutter something to themselves about trying some other day, and then leave to enjoy a lesser meal at a lesser establishment, somewhere.

I understand that moving to a location with better parking access would be expensive, as would paving their tiny parking lot and the ones surrounding it. I believe if Old South extended their hours back to 6:00PM (maybe 7?), it would help greatly with the dearth of available parking in easy walking distance since so many people and groups would not be crammed into that narrow time frame. This might be difficult due to the current labor shortage but might be do-able. Also, if you have the good fortune to find a parking space and actually get a seat before closing, please show your appreciation to your server and/or other staff who came to work that day with a generous tip. That might help with the labor shortage at this one...

Wanted to share my experience today while dining at Old South in Camden, that the food and service was and always is outstanding and consistently delicious. Especially the peach cobbler. Everything served in the buffet is homemade from raw ingredients and the owners and chefs sure know how to bring out the southern flavor in every dish. I’ll also add, to anyone giving a negative review, perhaps you’d consider applying for a job there as they have been terribly understaffed due to COVID conditions these past months and are still able to somehow pull off the magic of very high quality food and service. If you’ve never worked in the food service industry, especially during these difficult times in getting staff to show up and willing to work, then please keep your comments to yourself. Negativity has zero place in this current restaurant environment and is not appreciated by those of us who enjoy Old South. Kind regards - Todd Hicks...

First time for my wife and I. Pulled up at 10 past opening at 11. No parking. Thought this is a good sign. Got in and seated. Food I have to say was mediocre,canned green beans,instant mashed potatoes,chicken and dumplings looked unappetizing, all the side had no flavor. I will say the wings were good as was the fried chicken and beef. I did try everything on the buffet. Also I ran restaurants for years. So I do know what I’m talking about. This was not southern cooking at its best I’m sorry to say. I really did try to find some good things to say. I was very pleased with the friendliness of the staff. Also they did keep the buffet stocked and food was hot. But it’s not on my list of favorite restaurants to...