9 Best Southern Restaurants in Brooklyn

“As per most of my other recent reviews, I went to this Southern spot several months back. We went here after they had unexpectedly gone on the best new restaurants list having barely heard about the restaurant otherwise. The lighting was nice here and the staff was friendly giving good recommendations. They have ample space as well. The spot has a fun creative cocktail menu which are reasonably priced with some drinks having rather humorous names. I went with the A Complex Cocktail For Bitter People for $15 which is their take on a Negroni with roots of ruin gin, saffron liqueur, and vermouth di torino bianco which was excellent. The cocktail had a nice presentation with the vivid off yellow and the flower and it had a nice balance of bitterness, citrus, and herbal flavors. This was excellent though not on the current drink menu. They also had the opposite named A Bitter Cocktail For Complex People which was their take on a Manhattan along with plenty of other choices. As per usual for food, we split a lot of dishes. For smaller plates, my favorite was the Country Fried Baby Back Ribs for $16 with dill & vinegar and jezebel sauce. This sauce in question contains fruit jelly and combined with the dill and vinegar; it was a nice mix of sour and sweet with very tender ribs which weren't too heavily fried. Excellent. Also tasty was the Hush Puppies for $10 with jalapeno, cheddar, popcorn, and remoulade. They were lighter than expected with a little kick and the popcorn was fun for presentation. I think the remoulade should be on this side and not presented on top but I guess it's more artful that way. OK was the Crab Cake for $24 listed as corn flake crusted with whole grain mustard, radish, and herb salad. It was a bit pricey and the flavors didn't pop as much as the other appetizers. The mustard was a fun spin but perhaps don't order this as this is probably one of the only overpriced things on the menu outside of perhaps the steak. We ordered two main dishes; the Roasted Rib Cap and the Crispy 1/2 Chicken which were both fine. The former for $42 with bourbon worcestershire caramel consisted of a very tender steak though maybe a bit small. The sauce indeed had some sweetness but there was a bit of salt on the steak so it was pretty well balanced. The latter dish for $26 with`bama white sauce and herbs was solid. Tender fried chicken with a fun presentation. No real major complaints though I am not exactly sure if it is half a chicken (probably is though.) The restaurant is also known for it's desserts so we got both to share which are both $12. Of the two, my preference was the Key Lime Tart with toasted coconut and candied lime zest. I haven't had many good key lime tarts in the city and this was excellent as it wasn't too sour or sweet. The candied lime zest on top as well as the coconut just added extra pizzazz. I almost found the latter Banana Pudding Tart with caramel and vanilla wafers to be a bit worse. It was well presented as per the other dessert and it was plenty rich but it was perhaps a bit too sweet with the amount of caramel they put on top. This is a fun spin on Southern food which isn't exactly a cuisine you find commonly enhanced. The desserts and appetizers were definitely better than the entrees but the entrees weren't too shabby either. Upper 3/low 4.“

“Excellent example of Cajun/Creole cuisine. Highly recommended.“

“I wish I had opened Popina myself. It is a perfect restaurant. The spicy chicken milanese and carolina arancini are sublime-- the service is good and I feel a little like I'm in a different city when I go to Popina. One that is hospitable, a little slower, that allows you to savor every moment, sip and bite.“

“Delicious food and more than generous helpings.“

“Ok ok so this places looks beautiful service is lack luster for sure you can wear what you want no dress code. Cocktails disgusting can’t lie but I only tried 2 of them the food was good I had short ribs with the collard green pesto it was sooooo good an rib was tender for 30$ it definitely should be atleast 2 ribs on the plate potatoes were good as well 10/10 also oxtail pasta I thought it was disgusting 6/10 the person eating it thought it was delicious so it’s tbd all in all I wouldn’t recommend eating here“

“What an amazing place!!! The chef definitely knows how to keep you satisfied. The food was delicious!!! The drinks were fun and tasty. I truly enjoyed the steak and the crab cakes as well as the chicken sandwich. I'm definitely going back.“

“Good little spot ❤️ Enjoyed ourselves“

“The employees were fantastic, friendly and very knowledgeable about the food.I had the mushroom sauce Chicken sandwich with Mac n cheese... I highly recommend this dish.My wide had the spicy honey chicken sandwich and that also was delicious.“

“Ok wow! We've passed by here so many times but it was never open. Serendipitously, we walked by, saw that it was open, and stopped in. We are SO glad we did. My husband and I met "Darrell" who was smiling from behind the counter. Before we even had a chance to browse the menu, he was offering us samples of lemonade and best-seller sides. He offered us 6 different foods from the menu, and even one that wasn't on the menu. The customer experience was off the charts. We got a platter with fried chicken, mac n cheese, and fries. For the $25 price tag, it was worthy. The quality of the food was exactly what we were looking for. This isn't "cheap" soul food by any means. The mac n cheese had the perfect texture, and was perfectly spiced. My husband said the fried chicken was crisp and fresh, Darrell boasted about the fact that they use fresh ingredients only, you can taste it! We dove in way too quick to take a pic, but it was awesome. Their multi fruit lemonade was great too!“