Soul Secrets — Restaurant in Cincinnati

So I'll start by saying the food here is absolutely amazing! I would definitely recommend the food, 100%. Owner accountability, not so great. We ordered the chicken and waffles and a fried chicken dinner. While I was eating, I noticed black marks on the bottom of my waffle. At first glance, I thought it was potentially from the cast iron. But, no. It was not only on my waffle but also on the fried chicken. Turns out the black was from the ink on the tray paper seaping into the food. At that point, it was only on my chicken. I stopped eating, took photos, and let our waitress know the issue (who was great, by the way). She informed us that she was told to tell customers it was from the waffle iron. But I showed her that it was not just on my waffle. It was on the chicken as well. She took the remainder of my food, which was a substantial amount, and a gentleman came over. I assume he was the manager. He stated they couldn't do anything because of how much was eaten off of my plate, but the owner would be out to speak to me. We never asked for the owner, but I was okay waiting to give some constructive criticism. Mainly to just have her staff flip the paper to not have the ink issue. Sidenote: Because the space is quaint, our neighbors heard the conversation, and they ordered the chicken and waffles as well...so they checked theirs and behold the same issue, and they complained as well. While we were waiting for the owner and a box for his leftover food, my friend went to the restroom (near the kitchen entrance). There, he overheard staff complaining about how we were making a big deal about the black marks and requested the owner. Again, that was never a request. It was offered. By the time the box for his food came, he noticed ink had seaped into his chicken as well. When the owner finally came, she was defensive and immediately insisted that it was from the waffle iron and she was aware because she was in the process of getting a new unit. Because I know it happens, I immediately told her that we were not trying to get out of paying the check and that the food was amazing and under any other circumstance I would agree it may be the iron...I mean it's what i initially assumed...but that was not true in this case. We both tried to explain to her that it was not just the waffle, showed her his chicken which was still in front of him with ink transferred from the paper to the chicken, and suggested to simply have them flip the paper upon serving. She still insisted on debating the issue that what we were seeing was not ink instead of being accountable and taking the suggestion for what it was. The end result was her removing the waffle from our bill and a chicken breast in a to go box to replace his chicken. And no, there were no black marks on the piece to go. No apologies or replacement of my meal was ever offered. I promise the food is worth a try! But if you decide to go, maybe request no paper or request they flip your paper before serving your food to you if a change hasn't been made. It's all love, I love supporting our businesses (IYKYK). I really hope this reaches her, and she can hear it better this way. Ma'am you have a gem on your hands...just flip the...

Sooooo, normally when someone says to me let’s go to a soul food restaurant, it’s not a thrill for me. It's not that I don’t like soul food. It’s just that I can make my own and would rather try another cuisine. But this time, I decided to give Soul Secrets a try in Over-the Rhine, Cincinnati. I gotta say, it did not disappoint. Soul Secrets is a small restaurant with a bar on one side of the narrow room and dining tables on the other. It was full but not crowded. I was looking at what others ordered, and it was looking pretty good. The website only shows a few items focusing on fried chicken and fried fish, but at the restaurant, there were a few more options to choose from.

Friend one ordered the fried catfish, mac and cheese, collard greens, and sweet potatoes. Friend two ordered the meatloaf and collard greens. Prior to going, friend one wanted me to try the catfish. I was never a fan of catfish. Though I’ve only had it a few times, it always tasted muddy and fishy to me. However, I was willing to give it another try. But since I’m always on the search for a good chicken and waffles, that caught my eye. I also wanted to try some sides. But then I started to reason, can I really justify getting a waffle and then getting more carbs and starch. It didn’t make sense. I asked the waitress, "How was the catfish?" She said it was really good. Normally, she is not a fan of catfish b/c it tastes fishy, but she said this catfish was clean and tastes really fresh. So, I decided to give it a try along w/ sweet potatoes, collard greens, potato salad, and mac and cheese. Circling back, friend one took a bite of the collard greens and described them as perfect. For the mac and cheese, all I got was mmm,mmmm. When tasting the sweet potatoes, friend one said, “grandma put her arm in those sweet potatoes.” As for the catfish, friend one was speechless. Friend two unfortunately did not find the meatloaf to be as appetizing. Although friend two enjoyed the double portion of greens, it was felt that one tasted as if it had sugar in it, but the other did not. The meatloaf was just a hunk of meat. This meal is not something friend two would typically eat. But because the goal is to cut out sugar and carbs, friend two was hard pressed to find something on the menu to eat. As for me, I’ll just say at one point friend two said to me, “Are you dancing?” I didn’t realize I was. I received two large pieces of catfish that were hot, crisp, and well-seasoned. The waitress was right, it did taste fresh and clean. The mac and cheese was gooey and cheesy with a lightly browned top, the way mac and cheese should be. The potato salad had a nice balance of sweetness and mustard. I can’t speak to the collard greens, seeing as it’s a veggie, so I ask you to refer back to friend one’s comment. As for the sweet potatoes, they were quite tasty. Just like mama used to make. Those sweet potatoes took me back to childhood. They were absolutely delicious. For some reason, I got full quickly so I happily took home a doggie bag.

Bottom line, to my surprise, I highly recommend Soul Secrets. Prices are reasonable and as mentioned before, the food...

We traveled an hour to come here, on Tuesday, July 25th, around 2:00 pm or so. My family was bringing me for my birthday. There were 5 of us & the girl with braids & bubble slides on told us we needed reservations for 5 people. I told her we traveled an hour & she said “Ok.” We were about to leave & the guy that was helping us said “Uh wait. She’s going to accommodate you.” He proceeds to offer us high tables with extremely high chairs. I have ankle issues & we had my 2 elderly aunts with us. One with knee issues. I said “I’m sorry, but we can’t get up on those chairs.” He tells her & she says “Ok. Well that’s all we have.” Mind you, the whole back room was EMPTY. The front of the house, every other table was empty. I said to the girl, “You really won’t accommodate us? We came from an hour away & they wanted to bring me for my birthday because I’ve never been here.” Arrogantly, she responds,”Ok.” My aunt says “We were just here on Friday with 6 people.” The girl replies, “Ok. I wasn’t here.” (My aunt said she was.) I stated that I really was looking forward to supporting a Black-owned business. Again, I was given a dry “Ok.” I asked her if she was the manager & she replied “No.” I asked if I could speak with a manager. She said “Nobody’s here.” She was not friendly in the least. As I waited for my daughter, who had gone to the restroom, another group came in. I informed them of the reservation rule. The girl was behind the bar & confirmed what I said. The lady asked if she could make reservations online. The girl said yes & the woman stepped out. My daughter came out so we left. All 5 of us with our money. 1 white woman left the bar stating “It was too much” for her. Nobody, including the girl was loud or anything but it’s a smaller establishment. We went down the street to a very comparable competitor, The Eagle. 2 minutes later the other group of 5 came in. Soul Secrets lost 11 guests in less than 10 minutes to their White competitors that were in walking distance. And the food, atmosphere AND CUSTOMER SERVICE were AMAZING. My aunts said they would never be back to Soul Secrets & so did a couple of other people with the other group. Also, the other group went online to make reservations & no reservations were available until the following day. :/

UPDATE:

I don’t believe in telling the bad & not mentioning the good…

The owner of Soul Secrets, as seen below, responded promptly & offered her sincere apologies. She has rectified the situation to our satisfaction & exceedingly so. We hope to dine at Soul Secrets soon, enjoy a great dining experience & leave a...