The Lady and Sons (Savannah, Georgia)

I am indeed a Paula Deen fan, however when doing my research on where to dine while I was in Savannah every review I read said “Skip The Lady and Sons and eat at Mrs. Wilkes”. Originally I had intended to do just that. We ate at Mrs. Wilkes and enjoyed it, but on the last day we were heading out of town and decided to still give The Lady and Sons a try to compare for ourselves.

What we discovered was very interesting, and I am happy to share my review with you.

Located on the corner of Congress and Whitaker in Downtown Savannah, The Lady and Sons is a large three-story building that has had quite a history of success as Paula Deen has risen to fame and notoriety.

Upon walking in you are sent to the hostess stand while you wait for them to have a table ready for you. The waiting area opens up into the store next door where they sell Paula Deen Cookbooks, Cookware and other Chotchkie. It only took them a couple of minutes to call our names and we were then given a ticket, sent to the elevator and told to give our ticket to the lady on the third floor.

Once we arrived the third floor hostess took us to our table in the packed dining room. Our server brought us our drinks while another girl came around with a Cheddar Garlic Biscuit and a Hoe Cake for everyone. After consuming these two baked delicacies I already liked the Food here a little more then Mrs. Wilkes.

We briefly looked at the menu but knew that we were both just going to get the Southern Buffet ($15.99)

I noticed that there were not a lot of Meat dishes on the Buffet other then Fried Chicken, Baked Chicken and one Seafood Dish, however I mostly wanted the Sides and there was plenty to choose from.

I piled my plate with a Fried Chicken Breast, Mac N Cheese, Collard Greens, Green Beans with Potatoes, Lima Beans, Corn Casserole, Mashed Potatoes and Black Eyed Peas.

Other then the Chicken Bones I pretty much cleaned my plate and I really enjoyed everything I tried. I did think the Black Eyed Peas were a little too vinegary for me, however that had been my favorite dish from Mrs. Wilkes the day before so I was probably just comparing the two. I can also state that as far as every other dish goes I actually prefer The Lady and Sons version.

(I understand why people like the experience of Mrs. Wilkes but for ME the Food was better here, the line was much shorter, and the price was about the same when you take in to account the drink)

The Fried Chicken (which I am very picky about) was delicious – a crispy outer coating and tender and juicy inside. The Mac N Cheese was ooey-gooey and super-cheesy. The Corn Casserole was the perfect cross between Corn Bread and Creamed Corn.

Even the Salad Bar was pretty good offering Artichoke Hearts, House-Fried Croutons and Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing.

Our server reminded us that Dessert was also included and we should save room. Then he brought around a tray and we had our choice between Peach Cobbler, Banana Pudding and some Fudgy Chewie Brownie/Blondie Thing (Sorry I don’t remember what they actually called it).

We selected both the previously mentioned Brownie/Blondie as well as the Banana Pudding. I tried both and was impressed by each one, both very decadent in different ways. Thank God the portions weren’t too large because we were both stuffed at this point.

So all in all I am quite impressed with The Lady and Sons, and I honestly can’t understand why people give it sub-par reviews.

Perhaps though it was a good thing that I went in to it with little expectations, because that way it really shined in my mind… and I will recall it with good memories of a great experience.