One of my favorite things about living in the south is the food. Not too long ago a friend of mine from Baltimore asked me if I knew of any Soul Food restaurants in the area. At the time I truly didn’t, and I should be ashamed but I’m not so …. I had heard a rumor about little place called Straight from the Kitchen that had recently opened nearby and it advertised itself as “Made from scratch Southern Comfort cuisine.” We all know that that could mean another Chicken Fried and eggs place but I was intrigued and when my mother offered to buy dinner for my birthday I took the opportunity to stop in and try it out.
From the smell when we walked through the door I knew we were going to be in for a treat. It smelled like childhood in there, back when grandma lived with us and she made dinner every night. It reminded me of what home cooking smells like. My mother, uncle, and grandmother were waiting on my girlfriend and me when we walked in. I don’t know how long they’d been waiting but I could tell they were ready to get the ball rolling so I bellied up to the counter and looked the menu over. We were greeted warmly by owner and front man Matthew Thompson. He gave us a quick rundown of the menu and told us some of the history of the restaurant. Matthew and Wife and Chef Marsha began Straight from the Kitchen as a catering business, and they still cater, but recently made the decision to open a formal restaurant. “We wanted to open a place that felt like home.” Mathew told me. And that it did. But I was determined to reserve my judgment.
While the menu boasted only a limited number of choices, but the choices presented were all appetite inducing. Growling deep down, I decided on the Mouth Watering Pork Chops with Collard Greens and Black Eyed Peas. Grandma and my girlfriend both had the meat loaf.
“This is the best meatloaf I’ve ever eaten.” My girlfriend said around mouthfuls.
“I may never cook meatloaf again.” Grandma mumbled hunched over her plate.
It’s hard to argue with a great plate of food. Especially when there is enough of it for my skinny ass to have munchies food later and it’s good cold and reheated. You know what I mean, I know you do. So I say go check out Matthew and his crew over at Straight from the Kitchen, It’ll be well worth the trip I promise you. Check them out over at Straight from the Kitchen.net
