It's a Southern thing - Downtown Durham — Restaurant in Durham

Introduction: This was our first time at this restaurant. We dined here for brunch on a Sunday early afternoon.

Welcome: The hostess was very nice. We had reservations for the same time that our friends did and when I asked her could we all be seated together she arranged for us immediately with no hassle. The table for our party (of 6) was ready but all the members of the party had not yet arrived. The young lady was kind and with a smile said no worries just let her know when everyone was there and we would be seated.

Ambiance: The restaurant was nice and clean. It was well lit which made it more inviting. The furniture looked well kept and pretty modern. When you walk up the stairs once at the apex there is a chalkboard that displayed the name of the restaurant along with the businesses they proudly support. The bowl for the shrimp and grits was nice. I liked the miniature dispenser containing the syrup. The restaurant is a nice size with lots of seating.

Food: I ordered the chicken and waffle skewer with cheese grits which I substituted for the collard greens. My fiancé had the shrimp and (cheddar)grits dish which also included andouille sausage, paprika roasted tomatoes, and poblano peppers. This was my first time having chicken and waffle skewers and I must say it was nice. The presentation was simple and neat and the food was okay. The waffle/chicken was slightly stuck to the skewer which made it a little difficult to come off. I had to be careful getting them off so they did not fly on the table or fall on the floor. The waffle tasted a little overcooked but with the chicken and syrup, I was able to enjoy it. The grits were not hot but more warm. Our drinks were served in mason jars which went well with the restaurant's atmosphere.

Experience: We had a wonderful waitress. She was very polite and friendly. I liked her greeting and her all-around table etiquettes while serving and addressing and asking us questions. Our overall dining experience was good. I am not a fan of gratuity included but I understand why due to the overwhelming amount of customers that are either nontippers or "penny" tippers. The downside is it may result in the waiter getting less of a tip due to it already being included.

Will/Will Nor Return: I will return when I am in North Carolina again.

Stars: I am giving 3/5 due to the waffle being slightly overcooked and aside from the chicken the side meats were pork. The collard greens are cooked in pork also hence why I substituted them for the grits and they were not hot.

Tip: The shrimp and grits dish may be a little spicy for some palates so please consider that before...

It was just a thing. What a disappointment. From reading the menu we actually had high hopes but sadly left underwhelmed. We ordered hush puppies for the appetizer which we actually did not receive until after our entrees arrived and we had to flag down one of the food runners because our server basically disappeared. As we looked next to us, that table, seated after us was given our appetizer. The shrimp & grits in the words of my millennial children was just “mid”. It was drowned in sauce to the point that you couldn’t even see the grits. The grits, texture wise, were cooked well but the cheddar cheese left a bad aftertaste. The shrimp were nicely cooked but lacking in flavor. The dish also had way too many tomatoes for my liking and they weren’t allowed to cook down. The pan seared salmon was decent with the orzo, asparagus and zucchini. The service was just as disappointing as the meal. In the hour that we were there, our server came to the table maybe 3 times total. Even when he waited on the table right next to us he didn’t walk another 3 feet to check on us. We had completed our meals and it was at least another 10 minutes before he came with the check. We asked for a container to put the hush puppies in which he never brought. Oh, almost forgot something, in all of our 25+ years of dining out as a couple, this is the first and only time that a server has asked if we wanted separate checks! Unbelievable! Because he had been so long in coming to the table, I stopped him as he was turning to leave again to give him my card for him to close the check so we could leave. We did order dessert to go and it was bad. They listed key lime “pie” on the menu and it was anything but that. It was not pie at all but rather key lime flavored pudding for lack of a better word to describe it with graham cracker crumbs sprinkled on it and topped with whipped cream. In no way did it even resemble pie…at all! The banana pudding was worse. The pudding was chalky tasting with a a few slices of banana and a few cookies at the bottom. Needless to say, this will likely be our first and last time patronizing this restaurant. I feel for anyone that is new to experiencing southern cooking because this is not a good representation based...

It's Sunday and I'm used to brunching after church, so why should I do less just because I'm in Durham, NC. Well Dunham is a lot different from the DMV, they don't really brunch and they sure don't do bottomless, luckily It's a Southern thing does both. I said hey found one spot that does bottomless, he said do they have food you can eat, I said yes, he said say less and we headed to brunch. Parking was not free and not our customary Park mobile, so it took us a little minute to register the truck and pay to park. We walked half a block and up the stairs to the restaurant. Though we didn't have a reservation, we were seated immediately. Kay was our server and when she heard we were visiting, she was full of suggestions. She made sure we knew about the bottomless mimosas and when I say bottomless, that's what I mean. There was a young lady walking around topping off your glass. Two sips gone and there she was topping off your glass. We had to tell her to stop lol. On the the food, he had never had fried green tomatoes, so we had to get an order. The tomatoes were delicious and served over pimento cheese. That cheese put the tomatoes over the top. He enjoyed them so much, he ordered the eggs blackstone with the fried green tomatoes and I ordered the Cajun salmon cake Bene. Both came with hash browns and fruit. There was an issue where someone took our order to a table with the same order. The manager came over and was very apologetic. We had no idea and didn't care as we were enjoying the mimosas and conversation, but truly appreciated her taking the time to let us know what happened. We decided to swap one of our benes. Let me tell you, he got the better of the dishes. Though there wasn't much to his dish, it was flavorful and seasoned well. My salmon cake, on the other hand, was bland with no seasoning and definitely nothing Cajun. The garlicky spinach added some flavor, but not enough. The hash browns were seasoned really well. They were crispy on the outside yet soft and pillowy on the inside. If I'm ever in Durham again on a Sunday, I will definitely return.

Forgot to take pics of the green tomatoes and before we started eating, but at least I...