Southern Fusion (Formerly Heaven Cafe) — Restaurant in Locust Grove

My family and I decided to try this place out for Sunday breakfast. I called ahead and asked if I needed to make a reservation and was told yes so I made one for 10:30am. I have 3 small children so naturally I was running behind. I tried to call 6 times and alert them I wouldn’t make the 10:30 am reservation but every time I called I got a “mailbox is full” message. This place is 2 miles from my house so we get there at 10:45am. We are greeted and I tell the young lady that we are the party of 5. She looks so confused when I tell her I made a reservation. She goes and asks the manager (I assume) and this place is small enough to not only can I see the interaction I can hear it as well. The manager says “oh yes she did make one” to the hostess as if she forgot to relay that information.

We are seated and instantly asked for our drink orders. This was our first time there so I had no idea what they offered. I asked the server (who is also the hostess) to give us a moment to decide. She agrees and walks away. My husband and I take a few minutes to look over the menu and decide what we want. A young man then walks up to our table and asked if anyone has taken the drink orders. I told him we asked our server for a moment while we decided but we could give it to him. I told him we were also ready to order so if he could get our server and he said he can take our order. I said the entire thing? He said yes. So we proceed to order. I got two mini big breakfast (from the kids menu) with French toast, eggs, grits, potatoes, and one with sausage and one with bacon. We also ordered 4 regular orange juices and 1 water. It took this young man asking us 5 different times if we wanted regular orange juice and going over our order. 2 minutes after we have given our order to the young man, the young lady (hostess/server) comes over to take our order. We inform her that it was just taken and she is shocked and confused. She takes our drink order again. At this point, I should have known communication was an issue.

We waited for our food for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, there are multiple people coming in and out getting to-go orders. In fact, one guy came in, placed and order, and got his food all before we got our food! He had like 2-3 to-go boxes in his bag too.

We get our food and by this time the kids are on 10 because they are hungry. We start eating and everything was really good.

I want to stop here and point out the kids menu. I hate I didn’t take a picture of it but I recall what it said.

“Mini big breakfast *Pancake (1), French toast, or 1/2 Belgian waffle. Egg (1), grits, *hash browns or potatoes. Sausage, bacon, or ham.

** pancakes and hash browns not available after 1 pm on Saturday or on Sunday”

After reading it my husband and I both were under the impression that you get a pancake or French toast or a 1/2 Belgian waffle. 1 egg and grits. Hash browns or potatoes. Sausage or bacon or ham. When the food came out I felt something was missing so I asked where the grits were. I asked to see the menu again and pointed out where grits were in the series along with hash browns and potatoes and eggs. The manager came over and I pointed it out to her and she said not it’s either or. I said ok because it wasn’t serious but offered a suggestion on the menu. I explained to her that it was confusing and she should consider rewording it so this won’t happen to someone else. I felt a bit of an attitude but I didn’t let it get to me because I know we as black people are very emotional and she could have been frustrated with how busy they were.

We eat, the kids love it. I had the biscuits and gravy. It was delicious (had honey in it).

Pros The food was really good. Very close to my house. The portion size was really good.

Cons The entire staff seems to lack communication. From the moment we walked in it was clear communication was an issue. Their system for taking and preparing...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (10 Stars!)

This restaurant not only serves the most incredible food, but the staff truly make you feel like family. I’ve been a regular here for quite some time, and every visit reminds me why I keep coming back but this morning especially deserves recognition.

I came in for a to-go order and was greeted by Zay, who took my order and handed me a cup of coffee while I waited. At the time, he was holding down the front solo and doing it like a pro juggling phone calls, takeout orders, DoorDash pickups, and a couple who came in to dine. Through it all, Zay never lost his smile or his calm.

Soon, Mesa (I hope I’m spelling that right!) came in and immediately jumped in to help even before setting her things down. She greeted everyone kindly, including two women waiting for to-go orders, and moved quickly and professionally.

Then, an older Black woman who I’ve seen before with a consistently sour attitude came in and interrupted Zay while he was cashing out another customer. Despite her rudeness, Zay remained composed and kind while taking her order. Mesa continued assisting other customers with grace, even asking this same woman several times if she needed silverware, only to be ignored again and again.

Finally, when Mesa handed over the woman’s order and politely asked if she needed condiments, the woman snapped and said, “Don’t f*ing speak to me!”

Let me just say Mesa didn’t even flinch. She responded with the same kindness and professionalism she’d shown the entire time. Both she and Zay handled the situation with poise and compassion, never letting it affect their energy or service.

As someone who has worked in healthcare for over 26 years, I’ve dealt with my share of difficult people. It’s not easy to maintain your composure when someone is being outright disrespectful but Zay and Mesa did just that, and it was a shining example of grace under pressure.

To the owner and management: your staff deserve high praise. Today, they showed the heart behind the service, and I witnessed it firsthand.

Thank you, Zay and Mesa. Y’all...

My husband and I tried a new spot for breakfast this morning- Southern Fusion in Locust Grove.

To say this was the best breakfast I’ve had in a while would be an understatement. After just a few bites, I literally stopped mid-meal to snap a picture because I knew I’d have to rave about it. I even made my husband pause, too.

He ordered the “Big Breakfast” but swapped the regular waffle for their red velvet waffle, and wow, what a genius invention. The bacon was cut thick, almost like hardwood planks, and packed with smoky flavor.

I went with the salmon croquette over grits, which was perfectly crispy on the outside and delicious all the way through. The little cup of orange sauce on the side? Light, lemony, Cajun/Creole inspired, and absolutely chef’s kiss. Paired with the pepper jack grits underneath, it was a perfect flavor combo. Their country potatoes were also cooked perfectly, full of flavor.

The portions were so generous I couldn’t even finish my plate, and honestly, I was mad about it because I didn’t want to stop eating! I even turned to the two ladies who had just sat down next to us and told them, “I’m jealous of you both… you’ve still got empty stomachs!” We all laughed as I bragged about how good everything was.

Our server (I think his name started with a Z—Zayne? Zack? Sorry, my memory’s awful) was such a gentleman. He made excellent recommendations, treated us like royalty, and made us feel completely at home. As we were checking out, another staff member mentioned how great it is to work there, and how their boss is always the first to arrive and last to leave. That says a lot about the heart behind this place.

It was surprisingly slow while we were there between 9–10 a.m., which honestly made me sad because the food, service, and atmosphere were all outstanding. I think this was around $35 without the tip. They deserve way more buzz. And now that I know they serve lunch too, you better believe...