Great Food! Great Service! Hot and served fresh and with lots of warmth , Ambience was inviting and…read morefriendly and welcoming

The kid was home from college, and after we hit the local thrift, we were looking around for some…read moreOxford grinds. The street situation precluded a few spots downtown, and since we weren't in the mood for our go-to taco place, we decided to head out to the Family Diner. The walk-in was awkward on our part- cash register or hot bar line first? A sweet call from the kitchen of "Y'all's first time?" got us headed in the right direction. Full disclaimer: I've been nostalgic for the southern cafeteria lately. While talking to some food industry friends last week, we realized there is something powerful about the food we all remember from K and W. And while Family Diner doesn't have a giant dining room or a 5-snake velvet rope line to get to the counter, it does take me back. Here's how we made our choices: the hot bar was a choice of three types of chicken- the baked and fried were tempting until the gentleman serving us says: "We can fry you fish to order. Flounder, trout, and catfish." The chicken got skipped for a plate of flounder (plentiful plate, btw), and a side of the Mac and cheese and cooked cabbage. The kid sampled the catfish plate, same sides. Sweet tea. And yes ma'am, I'd like the cornbread. Done. We sat down at a table in the main, cozy dining room. The first thing that I noticed: this place is clean- tidy, even. There was a super polite young man moving around and busing tables, tidying up unassumingly and doing it in a way that is lacking in some finer dining places I've been in recently. The food came out, piping hot. I used one of the malt vinegar packets to douse my flounder (a cafeteria habit) and dug in. The first bite was light and flaky, cooked perfectly. Nothing greasy-tasting, at all, just clean. The sides were great- nothing over seasoned, and like cooking at home, there was room for you to season things to your taste. Well played, Family Diner. The owner (I think? She was the one who guided us down the right path when we walked in) came out to make sure that we were happy, and yes ma'am, it's great, and holy cow, you just dropped this cornbread into the skillet and fried it? Yes, we will be back. It's unassuming, and it's just what the doctor ordered. It's a cafeteria, but it's clean and polite and makes you feel good that you ate there. It's soul food, but not just from an ethnic standpoint- it makes me happy and full and feel welcome and I'll be back.

The food was well seasoned and not salty. Although the yams and string beans were out of a can,…read morethe seasoning was reminiscent of an older relative's heartfelt attempt to quickly put together a meal for unexpected guests. The turkey wings were tender a the Mac and cheese was very cheesy. This was a takeout order and we thoroughly enjoyed the 'soul food' like dinner. We would eat here again!

This is the worst "soul food" I ever had in my entire life. I ordered 6 ribs, yams, n Mac n cheese…read more I'm so mad I spend my money on this. Ain't a dang thing tru soul about it. The yams come out a can taste like they ain't do anything but throw cinnamon on it. Never in my life had dry yams and they barely even a sweet it just got a crap ton of cinnamon. Next the mac & cheese. Lord have mercy. The mac & cheese had the texture of soggy cereal, flavorless, and greasy. Ribs dry as h*** with little blotches of barbecue sauce here and there. Look like they bought the pre-sauced pack straight out of Food Lion and just put it in the oven. I definitely try and support our businesses but Tru Soul you MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE!! It was bad enough. I had to take it to the Internet. I couldn't just tell a friend about this one.

OMG!! The wife and I came out to NC for a wedding. My wife uses Yelp to find good food. She knocked…read morethis one out the park!! From the moment we walked in the door, we felt welcomed. We were shown the menu and placed our order. This is down home soul food!! The atmosphere inside was wholesome. I bit into my baked wings and almost fainted. So moist and flavorful. Their Tru Lemonade is the truth!! If you are near Creedmoor, NC, do not pass this place up!

What a gem! Was on a roadtrip from NC back home to VA, and wanted some good southern food. When i…read morewalked in, the decor was nice and unexpected with the Christmas stuff! (We're still a few days away from Halloween so i did NOT expect Christmas trees!).. was greeted by a lovely smiling older black woman, made me feel right at home. There was a pianist playing along to some instrumental r&b tracks (think chris brown, kehlani- new stuff! What a vibe!) You place your order, choose a seat and wait for your food. I ordered an oxtail plate with a side of greens and mac and cheese. Plenty of oxtail, definitely had to trim a good bit of fat but the quantity they give made up for that. It was $25 and i was very pleased with the quantity of food for that price. Oxtail plates in DC are like $40+ now. The greens were a little salty, the mac and cheese was great. Ordered a catfish w/potato salad (only $8!!!!) and just had it today, wish i got another piece of catfish, soo good. German chocolate cake-moist and delish. Sweet tea was the classic "too sweet"southern tea. This meal(s) was exactly what i wanted. I wish there were more places like this.. everywhere!

Great fresh sould food The place was ssooo clean…read more Staff was soo great and welcoming Me qnd husband will be back

I really wanted to like Nana Morrison's in Cary because I had heard so much hype about it, but this…read morewas a huge disappointment for me. As an African American woman, soul food is more than just food to me. There's a certain authenticity and flavor I expect when I walk into a soul food restaurant. I ordered several items and after tasting everything, I honestly ended up throwing the entire meal away. I took a bite or spoonful of each item just to give everything a fair chance, and every time I moved on to the next thing, it was another disappointment. The mashed potatoes had a strange aftertaste that I couldn't get past. I don't know if it was the gravy or something else, but something tasted off. The barbecue ribs tasted more boiled than slow cooked and were completely drenched in sauce. The cabbage was overwhelmed with vinegar and lacked seasoning. The mac and cheese tasted more like overcooked noodles with cheese instead of flavorful baked mac and cheese. The cornbread was dry, and even the cake was dry. I will say the restaurant was clean and the employees were friendly, so I have no complaints there. My issue was with the food quality and value for the price. Spending around $80 for a meal like this did not feel worth it at all. Maybe other people love it, but based on my experience, I don't understand the hype. The food just did not taste authentic or well prepared to me. I wish I had stuck with my original plans and just gone to Mikey's Diner in Wilson, North Carolina instead. At least I would have left satisfied. For me, this wasn't worth the drive, wasn't worth the money, and I won't be returning.

Fresh food made to order. The ham, egg, and cheese. Mac and cheese. Sweet tea. Chicken and…read moreDumplings are my favs!!!!

I've been here several times for breakfast. Excellent down home cooking. The service was…read moreaccommodating. The type of place where they know your name & remember your order. I recommend the red hot, egg, & cheese on toast....I told u it was down home cooking ;)

The workers are real cool folks and the food is so mouth watering good. Beats every meat restaurant…read morein town.

Pure Soul was such an fantastic experience. I've heard so many great reviews about this place, and…read morewas happy that it lived up to the hype. The food was straight up good. Everything was seasoned well, what was supposed to be crispy was very crispy, what was supposed to be rich was very rich. The reason I rate this place 5 stars is because of the creativity in their drumsticks. Although I know I'm not having chicken, it basically tasted like chicken. It had a wonderfully crispy outer skin, and they even put a thick skewer stick in the middle of it to simulate a chicken bone. I thought this small detail was genius, and honestly sold the entire plate for me instantly. Will definitely be back to try other things.

I went downtown to handle some business when the sudden urge for soul food took over me. After a…read morequick search, Raleigh Soul Kitchen popped up. While I didn't recognize the name, I recognize some of the photos on the website from social media. After a quick glance at the menu, I decided that I would be stopping by there to eat. I could have called or ordered online, but I wanted to put their claim for quick service to the test. Also, their prices weren't astronomical. Now, I was a bit surprised that the restaurant was located inside of a corner/juice store. But hey, I'm not Stranger to "gas station" food, so challenge accepted. I love the idea oc community innovation and joint-use spaces. The place is 100% take-out. Ordering was easy, but it can get loud in there so you have to yell a bit. Not all menu items are on the website. Do check the white board in front of the register. The day that I was there, strawberry banana pudding was a specialty on the menu. I didn't order it, but wished I had. I ordered, oxtail (it's auto served over a bed of rice and peas) with collards and mac n cheese, Catfish with Mac n cheese and yams, finally sticky ribs with cabbage and rice and pease. The collards were way too salty. They were cooked too mushy and I couldn't really taste the greens. The cabbage were almost too salty, but when paired with tbe rice and pease, they were perfect along both the oxtail and the ribs. The ribs were tender and delicious. A little over sauced for my liking, but still delicious. The mac and cheese and yams were delicious. Nothing special, but delicious enough that you want to order them at every visit. The stars were the oxtail and the Catfish. The oxtail were seasoned down to the bone and just perfect. This was my 4th try for oxtail since moving to Raleigh 7 months ago they have everyone else beat!! The portion was generous and I loved that it was automatically served over rice and peas as part of the meal. But the Catfish. THE CATFISH!! Perfectly seasoned and fried. My ride home was about 15 minutes and it was still crispy when I arrived despite being packaged in a Styrofoam plate. It was so light , crispy, and flaky. That will probably be my #1 go-to at this place. They were super busy from the time I arrived to the time I left so it took my order about 20 minutes. Try to call, order online directly from them or via doordash. Don't be afraid of the area. I know what tv teaches you, but just be open to exploring different communities. I can't wait for my next Catfish plate!!!!!

I always love a small, round the way, family-run good joint. The food is always good, people are…read moreauthentic, service is friendly and feels like family and home, and vibes are just so familiar and community-like. That's exactly what this felt like. Being a NJ native, originally from the inner city, this reminded of the corner stores where the best food is sold. I had the Catfish, Mac and Cheese, yams, and extra side of greens. The Catfish was nice and crisp, but I'm not quite sure if it's fresh caught. I'm not upset as this is a small run business, and it was still delicious. Now the Mac and cheese and yams were hitting! I didn't even want to eat them as quickly as I did because I truly want to enjoy them but I devoured every bit. The greens were ok, but I'm hard on folks about those lol But definitely support the local small businesses and if you're looking for some good soul food in the area, this is your place.

I hate to be that guy to ruin the 5 stars but... roll was hard, chicken salty as heck, fried hard…read moreas well which was good... yams not sweet, and please... I love Mac and cheese but the Mac and cheese tasted like leftovers and looked like leftovers. My girl had pork chop and guess what... salty her cornbread was dry and burnt at the top I feel bad for you guys around here being this is your only soul food spot would not recommend keep driving far away till u find the next soul food joint.

Wonderful restaurant with great food and an equally great staff! Such a perfect addition to the…read moreLawrenceville community! You simply cannot be disappointed stopping by for a meal!

They bright their truck out to Campbell University. They were serving their loaded tater tot meals…read more So undeniably good.

Come check us out and get your Cravin' on! You will not be dissappointed!!! My favorites are the…read moreBleu Devil Dog...how can you go wrong with a deep fried beef hotdog wrapped in bacon?