Pearl's Place Restaurant — Restaurant in Hyde Park Township

Back in the day a very long time ago,the customer service was worse than it is nowadays,and it was the female employees that was the problem.The food was better than the customer service if only by default.Guess What??? As a result of my totally unexpected return to this Soul Food restaurant recently with multiple visits,customer service from the female employees is still iffy at best unfortunately in 2024.The only reasons i decided to come back was to finally try their "very seldom" cooked Chicken Pot Pie and their Chicken & Dumplings too.After twisting their arm so to speak multiple times via multiple phone calls over and over again,they finally decided to cook their "extremely seldom" Chicken Pot Pie for me and my mom.Me and my mom both like it,especially the crust part of it.The gravy part of their Chicken Pot Pie is very strangely anemic aka almost non-existent,but the chicken and vegetables in it was very gourmet like though as it should be for something that they took about an hour or more total to cook for just two customers exclusively (me and my mom).It was barely a liquid texture of gravy,not the thick or rich type of texture that even grocery store freezer Pot Pies are extremely well known for.My side dish pick that day was their Mashed Potatoes & Brown gravy.The brown gravy was savory,but their Mashed Potatoes was the strangely chunky type,not the creamy type that I prefer unfortunately.I ate very little of that actually.Fortunately on this second return visit also,I was lucky enough to have a good or great male server (Shout Out to Brother Titus S.),because he's the extreme opposite of the female server (Kadijah H.) customer service wise,period.When I was leaving the restaurant after I finished eating,I kindly said "Have A Good One".Her response to my final words to her was literally the coldest shoulder more frigid than all of the 50 Winter Seasons i have experienced in Chicago combined.Needless to say,I only want Titus to serve me for now on or any Male server only whenever I decide to Dine-In,period.I can't and won't continue to give the greatest tips of all time for Abysmal customer service,talking about "Am I doing okay?????" over 50 Eleven Million times just like Kadijah H.did on my decades later return to this restaurant recently in March 2024.Her asking me this over and over again was not only annoying as hell,but Faux as hell too,period.On Average literally,Male employees overwhelmingly give the best customer service overall.I just turned 51 years old several days ago so this review is not coming from a Rookie,okay??? Their Original Pound Cake slice from this restaurant is literally the best I have ever had to date.Their Banana Pudding is also the best I have ever had to date too.Their Chicken & Dumplings is too salty MSG style,but edible enough for me to buy it again for sure.My side dish I had with their hearty Chicken & Dumplings was their Red Beans & Rice.Their red beans and rice was better than I expected aka pretty good.The beans were on top of the rice.The beans had a green "pepper type" vegetable sprinkled on top of them.Ambiance wise,they have so-called music playing in the background too,but the volume is not extremely distracting and deeply disrespectful like too many other "African" owned restaurants are guilty of in Chicago though.The bench seating desperately needs to be upgraded,because it's worn out and not as comfortable as they used to be.It's loose and broken apart bottom cushions too unfortunately.A remodeling and interior upgrade for their bench seating especially would be greatly appreciated.Their sweet tea is nice too by the way.Brother Titus S.graciously gave me a refill of that without me asking for it at all.Their restroom is nice too.Their Double Chocolate Cake slice is edible,but not as good as the the best one I have ever had which comes from the permanently out of business "Abundant Bakery"???.I also had a dry mouth experience after eating the double chocolate cake from Pearl's Place unfortunately.Titus S.said it's his favorite dessert from Pearl's...

Upon walking in, the "maitre d" (lol) was super brash. I simply asked if we could be seated in an area that seemed to be free to be seated, it was 8 of us. He waisted no time to dismiss what I suggested by responding basically saying, they will sit us when they are ready. This is the first indication for me that this outing will be very interesting.

We were seated, the waitress demeanor was very curt altering into rude behavior. It's not our fault she was the only waitress working. She basically discouraged us from ordering off the menu to do the buffet. This is becuase she was the only one serving. She didn't even ask us if we wanted something to drink. She brought out some dry "cornbread" and rolls. We had to ask for drinks. But she kept going to other tables assisting them without even assisting us. Everything you're supposed to get upon sitting at a restaurant, we had to ask her for. SMH. There was lipstick on my glass. I was so done up, I wasn't able to tell her because I'm not built to deal with rude people, so my aunt had to say something. Once she got that good tip that is when she started smiling and such but if it were up to me, we would have individually paid for our food and she probably wouldn't have gotten the tip she got.

Moving on. .. The young man at the buffet was much nicer than the host and the server. They don't really look like a happy staff. No one was smiling, it SEEMED pleasant EXCEPT for the young Spanish guy behind the buffett counter. You can tell, they really aren't customer service oriented but very courteous to their regulars.

On to the food..... It was good, no real complaints there. I love that it is a staple in the Southside community in Chicago however, the service is very questionable. If I ever go back to Chicago, I will probably find another spot, it was far from our airbnb anyway to only experience...

Hard to decide which dish or the buffet but that is the only difficulty at this amazing restaurant. From the second we walked in everyone who works here was courteous and helpful and I watched them extend that same service to every customer there. That's a great first impression. Coffee and iced waters came out quick. The first sip of my coffee gave me the feeling I was in for a treat. Then we looked at the buffet. My brother grabbed plates and didn't sit back down with us until they were full. My aunt and I ordered from the menu. She got shrimp and grits. I had the Bronzeville breakfast and can still smell and taste it, eggs cooked perfectly with sausage links that I wish I could eat everyday. Had to ask which ones they were and was told pork. If you get them you will not be disappointed! My aunt said she wasn't sure about the texture of her grits when they came out. Her comment was, they seemed soupy. Which is how I like them. When I looked back to see if she liked them they were gone. She ate all of hers and said it was really good. A high compliment coming from my Aunt Mary. Before we finished Mary got up to ask someone about the history there because of all the great pictures on the walls. She spoke to the man whose family owes and runs it and I couldn't help but lean in for the history lesson as well and had to ask if all these great musicians ate here. Most had not but they do make Buddy Guy's favorite pie and he would send someone down to pick it up for him. They told us to come back for lunch because it's even better. Hard to believe but will definitely have to try next time I'm in town! I almost forgot to mention the biscuits they brought out for starters. The presentation was almost as good as their flavor! Thanks to everyone we spoke to, who works here, and the managers family for opening and running this gold...