Annie Laura's Kitchen — Restaurant in Riverdale

Annie Laura’s Kitchen – A Beloved Staple with Room to Grow

For over 15 years, Annie Laura’s Kitchen has been a consistent go-to for me, and with good reason—the food is, more often than not, exceptional and absolutely finger-licking good. Their Southern comfort dishes carry a depth of flavor that keeps me coming back time and again.

Out of well over a hundred visits, I can recall only three occasions where the food fell short: twice, the turkey wings arrived undercooked, with meat still visibly red and inedible; once, the macaroni and cheese carried the unmistakable tang of spoiled milk. Those rare missteps, however, have never been enough to deter me from returning. In my book, 3 off-days out of 100 is a pretty remarkable track record.

The staff, particularly the young men and women taking orders outside, deserve special mention. Whether in the blazing summer heat or under a drizzle of rain, their attitudes remain warm, professional, and welcoming—a standard of service that deserves recognition.

Another point in Annie Laura’s favor is its pricing. Whether you’re dining solo or feeding a family of six, the portions are generous, and the value is undeniable.

That said, my overall rating of 4 stars reflects one lingering issue: the atmosphere. Both the exterior and interior are in dire need of an upgrade to match the quality of the food. The interior has long been closed for dine-in service, and reopening it could not only enhance the dining experience but also help alleviate the notoriously long drive-thru wait times—especially on Sundays.

Annie Laura’s Kitchen is a cornerstone of the community’s comfort food scene. With a refreshed space to match its culinary strengths, it could easily elevate from a local favorite to a true dining...

Today, this establishment has lost my business. I frequently visit this business for meals and even for holiday meals. I also have referred this business to family and friends. After sitting in the line for over hour, the young lady skips me and takes the next person's order. The young lady tells me I cut in front of the person. When, the so call manager on duty comes out to tell me you can pull out of line and come inside to take my order. Why should I come inside after being in line for an hour. Doesn't makes any sense. The manager tries to explain that I cut in line in. Which is not true when I pulled up when the vehicle was coming up at the same time. So, I didn't cut in front of someone after I pulled up before those cars. The original car saw me turning into the establishment and tried to race up to get line when my car was already pulling in to the establishment. Also, the person in the vehicle knew someone in the restaurant because the lady taking the orders went inside and got her a bottle of water. The young lady thought not taking my order was really funny by skipping me, that tells me I am not eating at the right place when the employees don't respect the customers. The young lady was smiling and smirking as she went to the next vehicle. I really bragged about this establishment, not anymore. The business can let other people's money support there business, not my money anymore. Try to support black own business and this is how you are treated even when you are trying to give them business and there...

I visited the restaurant as I was traveling out from the airport and wanted to find someplace that sold soul food cuisine and had a strong rating. The fact that the place was busy in the middle of the day and had a drive through line stretching around the whole building indicates it's popular.

I was very unhappy with the time it took to finally get the order. Since it was this busy I did the drive through thinking there would not be any open table spots inside this small restaurant. I had no clue that it would take over an hour in my car.

The back of the restaurant where the intercom and menu board would be are smashed up, so you have to go further and place your order at the takeout window itself. This means they can't prep ahead of time, every order starts at the pay window. Even given that, once I made my order I pulled up forward a spot and waited ahead of the window for about fifteen minutes until someone finally came out with it. The staff really doesn't have their stuff together and do not appear to have an incentive to move things along if customers are going to put up with this service.

This would be bad enough and a reason to never come back. But the food really was not that special. Fried chicken and two sides that are typical in quality that you can find at many other places. I won't name other establishments, but I can say with certainty that there's a lot better out there if you look around. If you look at my photos you some of them.

Hard pass on this place...