Martin's Restaurant — Restaurant in Montgomery

Got in sort of late on Wednesday night and wanted to go somewhere that was very "Montgomery." After a little research, Martin's seemed like our best bet. It's been open a crazy long time and offers typical meat and three, home cooking options.

It's a fairly spacious restaurant. Decor isn't really my style, but it's simplistic and comfortable and it's fun how they highlighted the restaurant's history.

The service was a mixed bag; two ladies waited on us, and one was really frazzled and tired and mixed up all three of our drinks, while the other also seemed a little tired but still on top of it. Overall, they were both pleasant and our food came out quickly. The lady working the cash register was lovely -- she'd been working at Martin's for over 30 years. Wow!

We all ordered the fried chicken with two sides. Between us, we got butter peas, macaroni and cheese, and collard greens. Hot corn muffins were also brought out to the table; though they weren't super flavorful, I enjoyed their warmth and toastiness, and they were good with a pat of butter on top!

I thought the chicken was pretty good -- I enjoyed the breading and the flavor. Not among the best ever, but solid. My mom's was sadly pretty dried out, though. The butter peas were definitely the best side, cooked to the right softness and nice and salty.

On the downside, the macaroni and cheese had basically no flavor and was an unpleasant, mushy texture, and the collard greens were also not very good. Also, the sweet tea wasn't CLOSE to sweet enough for me, which is unusual at a meat and three!

Also worth noting -- I'm guessing they do a big lunch business, because they were out of a lot of options by the time we got there at 6:30. No steak tips left, and not a single dessert left except for banana pudding. A shame, because I really wanted to try a slice of their chocolate pie.

On the whole, not a terrible experience; but if I find myself in Montgomery again, I'll probably be trying...

I was visiting in Montgomery, and family decided this is where we would eat. We arrived at 1PM, and, as is usual for Martin's, business was booming. It was about 10 minutes before our party of 6 was seated. Martin's is a Montgomery institution. I have been eating here since the 1950s. The restaurant has been around even longer than I have! That said, the choice of main dish changes daily. On Friday, the choices are country fried steak w/brown gravy, fried catfish, smothered fried chicken on rice, Martin's famous fried chicken, or a fried chicken chef's salad. For "meat and 3", that's only $10 including tax! Everyone at the table besides me had fried chicken. I don't eat chicken so I chose the country fried steak with brown gravy, turnip greens, steamed cabbage, and green beans. Everyone at the table raved about the chicken! On the other hand, I was total unimpressed by the country fried steak. In my mind "country friend steak" translated to the "chicken fried steak" we routinely eat in Texas. It wasn't. It was simply a breaded smothered steak. Okay, but not outstanding by any means. The vegetables, on the other hand, were absolutely outstanding, and I wished in retrospect that I had chose the 4-vegetable plate. Dessert at Martin's is something not to be missed. The meringue pies probably stand about 6 inches tall. Again the rest of the party chose either chocolate and/or coconut meringue pies, raved about them and had to get "to-go" boxes because the pieces were so big. I opted for the sweet potatoe pie. I didn't need a to-go box...it was too good to not eat it all in one sitting. Excellent! All in all, a very enjoyable meal with family in a down-home southern restaurant. The staff was friendly as could be, just as they have always been...

I came to Martin's because I searched for authentic Southern food. (Note: I'm a Yankee, who was in town for a job interview.) The experience certainly lived up to all of the excellent reviews I found online. The place was kitschy and homey with a welcoming feel. The waitress Charlotte was very friendly and attentive and answered all of my questions about living in Montgomery. (Other people were also friendly, but Charlotte was my main server.)

Alas, I decided not to take the job, which is too bad because I would certainly have made Martin's a regular go-to spot. The food was plentiful and delicious! I had the Meat & Three (fried chicken sweet potato casserole, turnip greens, and fried okra). Everything tasted fresh and wasn't greasy. The skin on the chicken was light and flavorful and not greasy at all. The sweet potatoes had this yummy streusel of pecans, cinnamon, and brown sugar that made it more like a dessert than a side, but the sweetness was nice with the savory of the other 2 vegetables. The corn muffins were light and slightly sweet and so delicious! I forced myself to eat only one (took the rest home with me for later) so that I wouldn't fill up on them.

I had my first taste of real Southern sweet tea. Not a fan at all but it's what I expected -- so super sweet that I got 3 cavities that day! Ha ha!

If you're hungry and you're in Montgomery, do yourself a favor and go to Martin's. Make sure to go hungry or get a takeout box for later. The food is delicious, the service is excellent, and the experience...