Aunt Lou's Soul Food — Restaurant in Springfield

Aunt Lou's calls itself the best soul food in town. Honestly, I believe it. Came down to Springfield for a quick weekend trip, and decided to stop in for dinner. As you can see from the picture, we tried quite a lot. Everything was well seasoned, if not just a little too salty or tad sweet sometimes, but ultimately delicious. Let's start with the drinks: Blue Kool-Aid was just like I used to make as a kid. Perfect amount of sugar. The Blue Shut Your Mouth, was just OK. It was a little watered down, but I still drank it. Now the starters: fried green tomatoes were good, but I prefer a cornmeal batter. The spicy ranch is just Franks mixed with ranch lol. Still good tho. Fried deviled eggs were 🔥. The filling is a little sweet, but the fried egg white part gave it some very nice texture. Sides: Collards were very tasty and very tender. They were big as hell tho. I would have enjoyed it more if they were smaller pieces or chopped up. Sweet potatoes were chef's kiss 🤌🏾. The issue I have with sweet potatoes at restaurants is that they usually adulterate them in something like orange or pineapple juice or something. These were not done that way. They almost tasted like how I make them at home. Cabbage was cut to a good size, tender, and well seasoned, but there was some underlying sweetness that I wouldn't have missed. I don't have anything bad to say about that Mac and cheese! It was creamy, cheesy, and delicious 😋. You can tell the cornbread was homemade, not jiffy. It had a good crumb and was a bit sweet. The "entrees": Mini shrimp and grits were very flavorful, but very greasy. Like, it was probably butter or maybe the oil the shrimp was cool in, but it was a lot. And if it was going to have that much, then the grits probably should have been a little more firm. The catfish was very nicely fried and seasoned. Not too muddy like some catfish can get. Dessert: The sweet potato pie was sweet, but it lacked any concentrated sweet potato flavor. The texture was also a little off. I can't really describe it. Also paste like maybe or soggy newspaper. I dunno. The crust was good tho. The peach cobbler was a great way to end the meal. Buttery, flaky crust. Sweet peaches that still had structure, but were tender and gave way when you bit into them. Very nicely spiced. Like I said, everything was delicious. Atmosphere: Not bad. Nice chill music. Wasn't too loud. Could still have a conversation without screaming and we were sitting right by a speaker. Service: Also not bad. They seemed maybe a little understaffed, but it wasn't too busy when we arrived. However, I could see that being a potential problem if it got any busier. Our server was pleasant and nice. They might want to invest in a little sign that either says wait to be seated or seat yourself or something because as folks who are not from the area, we were a little confused about what to do. The person manning the bar was also taking a phone call and there was no else at the front at first. Overall: solid 8/10. If I lived in the area, I would probably visit on a semi regular basis, and if I am ever in the area again, I will...

My overall experience was a 7.5/10, the atmosphere was nice, relaxing and welcoming. The service was good everyone that worked there was nice and made sure everything was tasting to my liking and if I need anything additional. However, the food was good but there is room for improvement. Nevertheless, it was good food for the price I paid. $26 for an entree meal that comes with TWO sides and cornbread and an alcoholic beverage.( most soul food places only come with one side and you’d have to buy everything else additional so that was a huge plus during this visit that I appreciated.) Thats a deal you can’t beat I’d prefer my sweet potatoes a bit more in the sweeter side but they were a 6/10, Mac and cheese was a 7/10 (me personally I like stringy Mac), the cornbread was 7/10 nice and warm and sweet and the the fried fish was a 10/10 the batter was light and crispy but packed full with flavor also the size of the catfish was a decent size as well. As for the alcoholic beverage ( blue shut yo mouth the name of the drink) it was a 5/10 not too strong but good. However, I will be visiting again in due time when things have changed a bit but over it is a good place to eat nice environment as well as costumer service. Follow me on TikTok @kdmillions to check out my food review on...

I will not be back to this place of business. I came here to have lunch to see if this place would work to cater my birthday party. As soon as I got there the floors were very sticky. My server was very short with me as if she had an attitude. I ordered a side of mashed potatoes and gravy I asked her did the gravy have meat in it and if so what kind because I don’t eat pork she told me that it didn’t. As I was eating it I noticed it did indeed have meat in it. I called another waiter because ours was so short with us and she took it back and it was pork chop meat in it. The cook with the dreads was very nice and said he would make more without the meat as I was waiting our waitress told me basically he wasn’t making anymore then she said the boss was in a business meeting but idk what kind of business meeting is at the bar while someone is smoking? I am actually pissed and the only reason I didn’t wait around is because I had my baby. The food was okay (macaroni a little sweet) but being rude will take away from...