Sam's Southern Eatery Salina — Restaurant in Salina

My mom and I went there yesterday, we are both born and raised in South Louisiana, so this Cajun food is the food we know. First thing that caught my eye was the “Sam’s sauce” so I had to try it on a crawfish poboy and some hush puppies. I’m pretty sure it’s roumalade sauce, and it was zesty and spicy and had a nice kick, so it’s a must to try! I hadn’t had hush puppies that small before, but they were very good, and the crisp on the outside was perfect. My crawfish poboy was really pretty good, not the best I’ve ever had, but I’m comparing it to a New Orleans one and I don’t think that I could even do one better than the New Orleans chefs do, but still very tasty! My mother had the fried oyster poboy and green beans. The oysters were very yummy and big! Very small issue with over-breading them and over frying, it’s small but makes a big difference, so my suggestion would be to coat them a little lighter with your breading and then fry till golden. Last but not least…. I had the sweet tea and my mom had the unsweetened tea w/stevia and they were both absolutely perfectly delicious . We will be back to try the fried green tomatoes, the crawfish boil, and I’m hoping much more.

P.S. they do blast Christian radio, which my mom liked, but not me so much, it was lucky I had ear pods so I put my own music on, even my mom said it was loud though, lol.

To the owners: Hi! you have a lovely place with food that I enjoyed, TJ was a kind, attentive, host, and he DEFINITELY needs a raise, hehe. Really though, we absolutely enjoyed his company. Your restaurant looks to be having a great start and I’m excited to see the this restaurant do well once everything settles. One small piece of advice though, not everyone is a Christian or wants their children hearing Christian music while trying to eat, so if you’d like it to be for everyone and for everyone to feel comfortable and welcome, maybe a variety of different music a few Christian songs in there would be fine too, and turn it down a bit? I’d also love to tell my friends too, and I know some who don’t mind and I have some who just wouldn’t be able to go. So, anyway it’s a suggestion, because I’m already excited to go back! When I do I’ll update this review. Thank you for the...

Shrimp was great, fish sandwhich was great, rice and red beans were terrible, green beans were awful, and hush puppies were good. They use jalapeños in their hushpuppies, and they add a nice kick. Their tartar sauce is very good and unique. I feel like the prices are... okay. This is really the only restaurant of its kind in the area, so they can have higher prices, but if there was competition, I think they'd be left in the dust. I was sad not to see more soul food available on the menu. I would like to see greens, corn bread, and more sides available. Sides were TINY, and I don't think any of them were good besides the hush puppies. They have a separate table for to go orders, making it easy to order and pick up when busy. Soda fountain drinks were gross. Maybe there was something wrong with their machine, but they were flat and stale tasting like they had been sitting out or something. Seems like their beans just come from a can and get dumped in a bowl. Flavorless and no seasoning. Service was not great. You have to order and then seat yourself and clear your own table. For these prices, I feel like we deserve a little table side service. No drive-thru Or curb side pick up available Spent $30 for a light lunch plus tip. Probably will not go again for a couple years.

Accessibility ♿️: parking was okay, but bathroom would be hard with a wheel chair. Tables are a good height. Kid friendly: no. Not a hood menu or seating options for them. Not even a changing station in...

I visited Sam’s Southern Eatery for the first time today and ordered two crab bags. Unfortunately, they were out of crawfish which we were informed of, but we were not told they were also out of crab until after we had paid $83.59 by card. Once we were seated, the manager came out and informed us that not only were they out of crab, but they also could not process a refund because they had no cash on hand and her manager code had been revoked, preventing her from issuing a card refund. She stated the only option was to receive a gift card instead.

During this time, another man entered visibly upset and used offensive language toward the manager, to which she responded verbally. The interaction was tense and unprofessional. It was also apparent that the manager may have been under the influence of alcohol, which raised concerns about the overall management of the restaurant.

To make matters worse, the manager placed blame on a young employee at the register, claiming he was unable to read the order properly. This deflection of responsibility was disappointing and unprofessional.

Overall, the experience was frustrating and left me questioning the accountability and professionalism of the staff. I’ve never encountered a situation where a restaurant was unable or unwilling to issue a proper refund, and it significantly impacted my view of the...