Highest-rated Southern Restaurants in Memphis by Diners

Mohamed-Kareem Mohamed // Shutterstock

Highest-rated Southern restaurants in Memphis by diners

When you travel below the Mason-Dixon Line, you'll find some of the most mouthwatering, comforting cuisine in the U.S.: Southern food.

Southern dishes are a vital part of American cuisine, from hushpuppies to ham hocks and beignets to barbecue. It's impossible to define a classic Southern meal, but a solid one starts with the sharp savory flavor of pimento cheese dip, followed by the delicious crunchiness of fried chicken or a spicy Louisiana étouffée, culminating with a sugary slice of chess pie that's best washed down with a tall glass of sweet tea.

What's unique about Southern fare is that multiple ethnic and cultural groups have influenced it. Spanish staples, such as potatoes and cocoa, are in many Southern dishes; the Acadians, who traveled to Louisiana from Nova Scotia and later became Louisiana Creoles, contributed their seafood to many Southern meals; African ingredients—okra, sorghum (an ancient grain), and black-eyed peas—became a part of the cuisine through the forced labor of enslaved people; French cooking methods, like braising and sautéing, are used for many Southern recipes; and Native Americans introduced corn to Southern recipes, yielding dishes like succotash and grits.

The Southern culinary scene is an explosion of cultures. To find out where you can sample some Southern offerings, compiled a list of the highest-rated Southern restaurants in the Memphis area using data from as of May 2, 2025. Businesses were selected using Yelp's ranking system, which calculates an adjusted rating value that takes into account the number of ratings as well as the rating score itself. Only restaurants with at least 20 reviews tagged as "southern" on Yelp within a 10-kilometer radius of Memphis were included. As a result, some restaurants featured may serve other food items.

Read on to find the perfect spot to get a taste of the South near you.

You may also like: The most expensive neighborhoods in Memphis

#29. Brickhouse Buffet

- Rating: 3.4/5 (114 reviews)
- Address: 2861 Bartlett Blvd. Bartlett, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Buffets
-

#28. Cupboard Restaurant

- Rating: 3.4/5 (205 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1400 Union Ave. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Breakfast & Brunch, Soul Food
-

#27. The Cottage Restaurant

- Rating: 3.4/5 (27 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 4085 Summer Ave. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Thai, Southern
-

#26. Jack Pirtles Chicken

- Rating: 3.5/5 (36 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 4349 Elvis Presley Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Soul Food, fast food
-

#25. The Genre

- Rating: 3.6/5 (34 reviews)
- Address: 200 Poplar Ave. Ste 105 MEMPHIS, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Seafood, Vegan
-

You may also like: Car insurance rates in Memphis October 2025

#24. Sweetpea's

- Rating: 3.6/5 (88 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5824 Stage Road Bartlett, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern
-

#23. Southern Breakfast Kitchen

- Rating: 3.6/5 (34 reviews)
- Address: 2990 Kirby Whitten Road Bartlett, Tennessee
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Southern, Salad
-

#22. Southern Hands Homestyle Cooking

- Rating: 3.7/5 (164 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 6025 Winchester Road Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern
-

#21. Southern Hands Home Style Cooking

- Rating: 3.7/5 (27 reviews)
- Address: 1811 Kirby Pkwy Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern
-

#20. King & Union Bar Grocery

- Rating: 3.9/5 (84 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 185 Union Ave. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: American, Southern
-

You may also like: Best public middle schools in the Memphis metro area

#19. Barksdale's

- Rating: 3.9/5 (194 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 237 South Cooper St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Breakfast & Brunch, Diners
-

#18. Flying Fish

- Rating: 3.9/5 (603 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 105 South 2nd St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Seafood, Cajun/Creole, Southern
-

#17. Central BBQ

- Rating: 3.9/5 (2552 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 147 East Butler Ave. Downtown Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Barbecue, Southern
-

#16. Sage Restaurant

- Rating: 3.9/5 (278 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 94 South Main St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: American, Southern
-

#15. Blues City Cafe

- Rating: 4.0/5 (1895 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 138 Beale St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Barbecue
-

You may also like: Cities with the most expensive homes in the Memphis metro area

#14. The Green Beetle

- Rating: 4.0/5 (224 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 325 South Main St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: American, Southern, Sports Bars
-

#13. ACRE

- Rating: 4.0/5 (143 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 690 South Perkins Road Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: New American, Southern, Desserts
-

#12. Hog & Hominy

- Rating: 4.1/5 (734 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 707 West Brookhaven Cir Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Italian, Southern, Pizza
-

#11. Gracie's Kitchen

- Rating: 4.1/5 (73 reviews)
- Address: 7185 Stage Road Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Soul Food
-

#10. Dino's Grill

- Rating: 4.1/5 (130 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 645 North Mclean Blvd. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Italian, Southern
-

You may also like: Highest-rated fine dining restaurants in the Memphis area by diners

#9. Soul Fish Cafe

- Rating: 4.1/5 (298 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4720 Poplar Ave. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Seafood, Soul Food, Southern
-

#8. Peggy's Heavenly Home Cooking

- Rating: 4.2/5 (95 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 326 South Cleveland St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Soul Food
-

#7. Trap Fusion

- Rating: 4.2/5 (58 reviews)
- Address: 4637 Boeingshire Drive Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Caribbean, Seafood
-

#6. Soul Fish Cafe

- Rating: 4.3/5 (549 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 862 South Cooper St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Seafood, Soul Food
-

#5. Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken

- Rating: 4.3/5 (863 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 730 South Mendenhall Road Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Chicken Shop, Comfort Food
-

You may also like: Memphis 7-day weather forecast

#4. McEwen's Memphis

- Rating: 4.4/5 (619 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 120 Monroe Ave. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, New American
-

#3. Itta Bena

- Rating: 4.4/5 (503 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 145 Beale St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Venues & Event Spaces, Bars
-

#2. Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken

- Rating: 4.5/5 (3592 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 310 South Front St. Memphis, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Chicken Shop, Comfort Food
-

#1. Southern Social

- Rating: 4.6/5 (701 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 2285 South Germantown Road Germantown, Tennessee
- Categories: Southern, Cocktail Bars, New American
-