A few years back after my mom passed away, I took our children to Georgia to a camp that their cousins have been going to for years. Our two children never went, and my mom’s wish was for them to go. So that summer after I dropped them off at camp, my best friend and I decided to take a road trip to New Orleans, per the request from my husband to take a break. My mom had been living with us for four years, and my family and I were her caretakers. Times like these are an excellent time to get away after an emotional time in your life.
So after I dropped the children off at camp, I picked up my friend and we headed west from Atlanta. The first stop was in Montgomery, Alabama.
I remember stopping for gas, and we were hungry and ready to take our first break. So my friend looked up on Trip Advisor to see which restaurants would be the best. A bunch came up, but Martin’s had a five-star rating, and it had southern fried chicken… who could resist that!
So we headed over. It is in a strip mall and didn’t look fancy at all; sometimes if I don’t know what it is like inside, I would judge it before I walk in, but as we parked our car, we saw many people going in and many coming out. We thought this was a good sign. Then when we were walking in, we asked a few people if it was good, and several said, “Well, it’s good enough for us to drive an hour to get here to eat.” Others said, “best-fried chicken you will get in the south or best catfish in Alabama.” We had gotten the seal of approval, so we went in.
The tables were covered with tablecloths and had a few staple condiments on them, such as Alaga Southern Seasoning Hot Sauce, Bruce’s Tabasco Peppers in Vinegar, Honey, Cranberry Sauce, and whipped butter.
All meals were served with their authentic homemade corn muffins; I love cornbread and corn muffins!
Since 1940 Martin’s Restaurant has been serving southern food; if you were a family in the south, you would be eating this for dinner every evening.
Their menu changes daily, so we decided after we ate there on our way to New Orleans, we would stop on our way back to Atlanta too! It gave us a chance to try more of the dishes on their menu.
We had their Famous Fried Chicken, Creamed Corn, Fried Okra, Cole Slaw, Steamed Cabbage, Green Beans, Mashed Potatoes with Gravy, Cheesy Grits and Rice with Gravy. But they do have plenty of other dishes we didn’t get to try: Fried Catfish, Meatloaf, Sliced Roast Beef, Salmon Croquettes, Chopped Steak, Pork Chops with Dressing, Homemade Chicken & Dumplings, Turkey and Dressing, Fried Shrimp, Fried Oysters, Turnip Greens, Black-eyed Peas, Collard Greens and Candied Yams. Yes, there is a lot on their menu, and it changes daily!
Their hours are Monday – Friday from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm and Sunday 10:45 – 2:45 pm and closed on Tuesday. Martin’s welcomes all veterans and military from the nearby bases.
If you have been to Martin’s please let me know; if not you should look them up and make the trip… you will be glad you did!
