Southern Kitchen
 Southern Kitchen |
9576 Congress St
New Market, VA 22844
(540) 740-3514
The Shenandoah Valley has it all—beautiful mountains, winding roads, scenic rivers, and Civil War battlefields. Who knew that it also featured the Southern Kitchen?
Serving great food since 1955, the Newland family’s Southern Kitchen restaurant is a real find. Located in New Market, Virginia, the restaurant is on Old Valley Pike (now called Highway 11) where Union and Confederate forces collided throughout the war.
Southern Kitchen never left the fifties. Green vinyl covers the booth seats and counter stools, and there are genuine Rock-Ola jukes at each table. The waitresses even dress in white skirts.
Southern Kitchen features several homemade soups ($2.75/cup, $4.00/bowl), including vegetable beef and oyster stew, all of which are hearty and rich. But, it is the homemade peanut soup that takes the prize. Nobody will disclose the closely held ingredients, but the soup is thick, creamy, and nutty (go figure) with small bits of sweet onion and peanuts. It’s super good!
Main courses are served with a choice of two sides. There are a lot of choices, and it’s worth trying them all—homemade stewed tomatoes (sweet and tangy), buttered beets, hand-cut fries, or homemade cole slaw.
The menu is big, and when the patrons see you struggling with decisions, they will loudly voice their opinions. Many say that nothing is better than the famous homemade fried chicken ($9.50/3 pieces and 2 sides). It comes piping hot and is golden, crunchy, and super moist, with a hint of peppery spice. Really good, just like they say!
All the portions are sizeable, like the salty local Virginia country ham ($11.75) and the baked Western ham served with raisin sauce ($11.25). So sizeable, that the meals are wheeled to the table on a trolley.
If you are just passing through, stop in Southern Kitchen and grab a peanut butter and jelly sandwich ($2.75) to go with your fried chicken. Then, head up to Skyline Drive, a magical road wandering 105 miles along the crest of the Blue Ridge mountains. The mountain air will just makes everything taste even better.
JGE © 2008
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