Doc's Porchside — Restaurant in Georgia

A Promising Bite with Room to Polish

I recently stopped by Doc Portside to try a to-go order and walked away impressed by the food, though the overall experience had a few rough edges worth noting.

To start with the positives: the food was genuinely good—well-prepared, flavorful, and worth the wait. That wait, however, ran about 20 minutes longer than quoted, which could be an issue on a busy evening. Still, the quality of the meal helped offset the delay.

The atmosphere inside the restaurant has potential, but there are noticeable distractions. Items like broken chairs and miscellaneous storage were clearly visible in guest areas—small details that detract from the otherwise pleasant setting. The ambience was fair; the restaurant was relatively slow that evening, and the energy matched that pace.

Pick-up for to-go orders is handled at the bar, reminiscent of how Applebee’s used to manage their takeout before curbside service became standard. It’s functional, but could benefit from a more streamlined approach, especially as to-go dining continues to be a major draw for customers.

Staff interactions were friendly, if not particularly enthusiastic. It felt like a quiet night had dulled the mood a bit—not rude by any means, just not especially welcoming either.

All in all, Doc Portside shows a lot of promise. The kitchen is clearly doing its part, and with a little more attention to the guest experience—both in-person and takeout—it could easily become a standout spot. It’s the little things that separate...

I really wanted to like this place. Service was slow and the food was underwhelming. Lots of people waiting to be seated when we arrived even though there were plenty of available tables. Likely because the kitchen staff isn’t able to keep up with a full restaurant (then do better training or hire more cooks). Appetizer took too long to arrive even though the table across from us that got seated after us got their appetizer before us. Was told that they were out of sliders because they ran out of the small slider buns. Then make an executive decision and run to Kroger, which is literally across the street, to get more buns. The mac & cheese was the weirdest I’ve ever tasted as was the cole slaw. Cole slaw wasn’t creamy at all and was actually spicy. I like spice, just not in my slaw. Pulled pork was a little dry and when the bill came I realized I was actually charged for the small cup of BBQ sauce. The server asked what sauce I would like when I ordered, giving me the impression that it was included with the meal. Overall the food was nothing special at all and it was definitely overpriced. When this place was a Wild Wing Cafe we came here all the time. The food and service was much better then. Unfortunately as a Doc’s Porchside we won’t be going back. What a shame because it’s close to home and convenient for us. Like I said, I really wanted to like this...

So this place took over for Wild Wings cafe. Truthfully, I was never a fan of WWC's food but I did like the sports bar atmosphere. So with this place I figured better food same atmosphere. Plus the beer menu is pretty much the same and I like it. A huge variety of craft and commercial beers. Not a huge cocktail fan so might want to rely on someone else. I've been here twice. The very first night, which was a bit rocky. But that's to be expected. But the food was still good. The second time I came was during trivia night. Very popular event, so I knew it would be crowded. TIP: when you come on a crowded night ask the server how long are wait for entrees that way you can decide to order sooner than later so the wait seems less. We had the fries again, the pretzel bites, trio of pulled pork sliders, funnel cake hush puppies, wings, and red neck egg rolls. All worthy of trying again. The hush puppies are a bit sweet since they use funnel cake, the spicy sauce you dip it in balanced it out. The sliders were cooked well and flavorful. The entire table loved the egg rolls and the wings were bigger than WWC just not as many flavors. Overall, good food and a good time. I'm sure the complaints about wait time will die down, smoking is an art and not a fast one. Sorry for the lack of pictures, it was trivia night, had to...