When we were Walmarting it on Monday night, a friendly security guard in the parking lot told us that Paula’s from Savannah, and her restaurant, Lady & Sons, is downtown.
Fine Dining for the Budget Minded Traveler
I visited her website, to find out if dining at a celebrity chef restaurant was in our budget. To my surprise, Lady & Sons has an incredibly reasonably priced menu, including a $14.99 all-you-can-eat southern buffet on Sundays! Her down to earth price list shows that the woman is really keeping true to her single Mom, working class roots. Ya gotta love her for that.
On Sunday, we hit up Paula’s buffet, and had some of the most incredible food ever. Jim had what he says was the best fried chicken he’s ever had, and I got to enjoy a huge variety of southern veggies, including tomato-stewed okra, black eyed peas and collards, lima beans, mashed potatoes, and more! Our deserts–“Key Lime Oooey Gooey” and a banana/strawberry cream pie dish, were incredible too. Our total for lunch and two bloody marys? $41 (plus tip)!
Vegetables Aplenty In the South
As a vegetarian, I didn’t think be eating fresh vegetables in restaurant down here, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the number of veggie dishes that are traditional southern favorites.
Thanks for asking Holly. Happy anniversary!
We only ate at Lady and Sons for Sunday brunch, when the do not accept reservations. You just show up and take a number. We got right in by choosing to sit at the bar, which was a blast!
According to the Lady and Sons restaurant reservations policy, it appears they do not accept reservations for parties smaller than ten persons most days of the year.
The hostess begins to take names at 9:30 am for lunch and dinner on a first come first served basis. Just show up early the morning you want to have dinner and put your name on the list to get a table!
I watch Paula Deen’s TV program everyday and in November my hubby and I will be celebrating our 42 nd Wedding Aniversary and he has promised to take me to Savannah just so we can eat at Lady and Son’s Restaurant.
I’m so excited I can hardly wait for our aniversary to arrive.
I need to know if we need to make reservations at lunch or dinner. Please let me know so we can make sure we get to eat there around Nov. 24-25 or 26 of 2008.
Thanking you in advance.
I don’t even think they take reservations for brunch (when we went).
When we arrived there were some girls sitting outside who put our name on the list. Then we discovered there was no waiting for a couple seats at the bar!
Is it hard to get reservations or do you even need them?
Yes, the Paula Deen Buffet will be opening at Harrah’s Tunica in May. We’ve been having some of their folks down here to Savannah for training and some of our cooks have been up there to make sure they get that good Savannah flavor just right.
We haven’t heard anything about it. But if it’s true, we are there! Anybody else know?
We thought that we heard that Paula Deen was opening a resturant in the Memphis or Tunica area. Any truth to the rumor?
some folks never heard of “menudo”!
ahh,,,, sissy neva heard you talk like that, … cool… you go girl… happy that you’re enjoying life and eating well too:) Love ya lots! Miss ya too!
As far as how vegetarian the food is . . . well I didn’t say they were 100% animal product free, did I? No, I know the reality is that many of them were cooked with ham hocks and animal fats.
But the truth is, I’m not a VegaNazi, if there is good food around, and I can pick out the meat chunks, hell, I’ll eat it.
I honestly don’t see how 100% strict vegans and vegetarians can live life, find places to eat out, and still have a good time. More power to them, but I’m not that strict about it.
Aaah, Paula Dean’s place … I remember it well. Your review is spot on and the food is heavenly.
Savannah is a lovely city and the food is a big part of it. I also remember the nearby park where much of “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” was filmed.
There’s also a wicked brew pub a few blocks away from PD’s restaurant near the riverfront and across the street from the major hotel. One of the sudsy choices had an alcohol content of about 8% and I remember drinking there when a chum came in (from the conference we were attending) and ordering one without knowing the potency. We talked a little business and after his beer, he stumbled back to the hotel to lie down.
I also remember chatting with the doorman at the hotel who after discovering that I was from California said he’d like to visit the West coast sometime. I told him that one of the reasons I loved the South is because I had a hard time finding grits in CA. He was taken aback and reassessed his travel plans. He wasn’t sure it was worth visiting someplace that had no grits.
Y’all travel safe out there, ya hear?
ummm, sounds delish! however, just how ‘vegetarian’ are those veggies cooked? my experience with southern cooks (coworkers) is that there’s a lot of bacon grease and pork back used in the creating of these dishes. that’s what gives them ‘flava’!
Shore thang … down by the Corn Hole you can get slaw or beans if you don’t want crabs.
They have vegetarian dishes in the south?
Next thing we’ll hear is that there’s vegetarian food south of the beef curtain. Argentina is rough on vegetarians.