Duke's Restaurant — Restaurant in Winston-Salem

First time there while hanging with some friend, the waitress was super energetic and the environment kinda felt homey/southern.

I had a chicken biscuit with tomatoes and bacon, and a pecan pancake off their breakfast menu. The biscuit itself was good, a bit dry but it tasted like a made from scratch biscuit. The bacon was slightly crispy with a little chew (I prefer it this way but others may like it different so make sure you are specific), the tomatoes was a little thin and pale but still delicious. My main complaint is on the chicken itself (I ordered it grilled) it was seasoned perfectly, I have no issues with the taste at all. My issue was with it being overcooked and dry which is why I'm giving four stars out of five. Everything else was superb but this was something I can't let go as it's part of the primary build of what I ordered.

The pecan pancake was amazing, they don't make the pancakes with the pecan filled in like waffle house and some other places do, instead it was served on top. A little butter and syrup and oh my god you'll slap whoever is across the table it's so delicious.

I ordered a sweet.tea and have no complaints. Not too sweet but not tea flavored water either. Almost a perfect balance in between.

I plan to come back myself and try their lunch, they have a lunch bar you can order from (saw some pecan pie that I will have to try because I am weak in the knees for a good home slice of pecan pie), or a menu.

Overall it was a great experience with one minor issue but I still plan to come back one day and enjoy a burger or something special. I forgot to ask the waitress what she recommended or was her favorite which I normally like to do because you can find some hidden gems when...

I am giving 2 stars because the food came out really quick and service (the waitress) was decent.... my food however was not very good, the grilled chicken was so tough and dry, the broccoli and cheese had some sort of mystery "moosh" in it...it is just supposed to be broccoli and cheese...it had random white mooshy ingredients I could not identify, the okra didn't get to the table until I was almost done eating, it was so nasty, hard on the outside and not all the way cooked on the inside...I didn't even eat it & I love okra. Not to mention the hostess or whoever it was at the front desk never even offered us a high chair for our baby, I had to get up and go find one..I had a dirty (pee diaper) I needed to throw away, I was looking for the bathrooms at first, saw a trash can next to the hostess stand, behind the counter, the lady made eye contact with me so I asked if I could throw that away and she was like "uh does it smell?" I was like "no.." I would have happily put it in the bathroom trash but since she made eye contact with me I assumed she was going to guide me in the right direction of where she wanted me to put the diaper. It was an awkward situation. She was constantly on her phone, it took me like 5 minutes to check out because she was giving someone a number, then when she finally recognized I was there, the bill was $17 even. I gave her 17 ones...it took her forever to count, face, and re-count the ones...never once did she smile, ask how everything was or say any nice or polite gesture, she should not be working in the public, especially head of house if she is that unfriendly. I will not be...

Good...... I waited until I had been here a few times, before doing this review. My first experience made me mad and I went out the door without eating. I met their drill sergeant. Yes they have one. And it was her primary concern to get me in, dish me food and say next... I saw this And saved myself the experience. However, I have eaten here three or four additional times now. The sergeant is not always in charge of the cafeteria line, I am pleased to report. The food on the buffet line is always good. Is definitely hot and fresh. The service is always good. But this restaurant is definitely set up the handle volume. I always feel like I have moved a little farther up north when I eat here. That's not always a bad thing when you wanna get in and out of a restaurant. But this wouldn't be the restaurant that I would want to go to, to have a casual sit down relaxing meal. It is generally busy & hustling. Although at some portions of the day this might be much different. The price is mehhh. Yes, mehhh. Not wonderful. Not unacceptable. Positives: They have little amenities on the table like BlackBerry jelly and Honey. The waitresses in general seem very personable. They serve breakfast to order, all day. And it is good. I really love a spinach and feta & cheese omelet. And theirs is no exception. The portions are good. I wish they had a 4.3 ... Four seems a little underrated but that's where I rank it. Not a 5. I haven't tried their hamburger yet. Next visit I will...