Soul food for Sunday brunch? Well, yeah, that'll work.
The Brown family of Folsom recently joined me for that spread at the year-old Mama Sue's in Rancho Cordova.
Dana was a bit worn after finishing a half-marathon that morning.
"I started out too fast and had no juice at the end," she said. She paused to sniff at the aromas wafting from a lineup of stainless-steel chafing dishes. "Now I'm starting to feel hungry …"
So were her husband, Nate, and their daughters, Ava, 7, and Bianca, 5. With good reason, for the chafing dishes were loaded with well-sauced chicken breasts smothered in mushrooms and sliced onion, along with fat link sausages, caramelized yams, steaming collard greens, creamy baked mac 'n' cheese (cheddar, Parmesan, evaporated milk, butter), glistening coleslaw and freshly baked cornbread, which was surprisingly dry.
We loaded our plates and got a head start as sous chef George Vergara stirred eggy, made-to-order creations at the nearby omelet station and turned out hot waffles that tasted of cinnamon and nutmeg. The sweet tea was just right.
So, where were the buttermilk-dipped fried chicken and the cornmeal-dusted catfish fillets we'd come for? Oh, of course – they're cooked to order and take a few minutes; ask for as many pieces as you like. We did (overdid, actually) and they arrived hot, crisp and juicy.
As for favorites: "I like the crunchy texture of the fried chicken and the fluffy mac 'n' cheese," said veteran diner Ava.
Bianca doesn't talk with her mouth full, so she pointed her fork at the remains of her smothered chicken.
"The way they're cut, these collard greens remind me of my grandmother's," said Nate. "She made a lot of soul food for Thanksgiving dinners."
Dana nodded. "Nate's sister cooked the way his grandmother did, so I always looked forward to her holiday dinners."
Which connects with what co-owner James Williams said on the phone days later: "A lot of military people who are from the South come in here, and they keep saying the same thing over and over – 'This food reminds me of home.' "
What we think of today as soul food – a term made popular in the 1960s – is rooted in the slave quarters and plantation kitchens of the antebellum South. These days, you'll find versions of soul food in the South, but also in the the West, the East and the North.
Mama Sue's menu represents the concept well, with hot links, pork chops, all kinds of chicken, appropriate sides (black-eyed peas, creamed corn, rice and gravy, potato salad) and traditional desserts (peach cobbler, banana pudding, sweet potato pie). Just about everything is made from scratch, Williams said, and it tastes like it.
As for the pairing of chicken and waffles, that dish originally was a late-night snack introduced at the Wells Supper Club in Harlem in 1938. Mama Sue's handles it well.
You can get bones, too. Slabs of St. Louis-style pork ribs are smoked over mesquite and served as lunch and dinner specials Fridays through Sundays (after brunch).
"I started working in restaurants when I was 14 and owned (a fine-dining house) in Michigan before coming out here three years ago," Williams said.
The "Mama Sue" in the restaurant's name refers to his late grandmother, Sue Ella Lewis. "All the recipes are from her," he said. "The ones I can't remember, I get from my mom."
Williams hosts "community nights" on Tuesdays, benefiting various charitable groups. "I do it to reach out and connect with the community," he explained.
The Sunday we visited, frantic jazz played over the sound system. Hmmm. Where were Aretha Franklin and Smokey Robinson, the Drifters and Martha and the Vandellas?
"We play R&B and funk throughout the week, so we mix it up on Sundays," Williams said with a laugh.
In that case, we'll see you on a Saturday.
MAMA SUE'S KITCHEN
WHERE: 10113 Folsom Blvd., Rancho Cordova
HOURS: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Mondays; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturdays; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Sundays (brunch is 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; $16.99 adults, $6.99 children)
FOOD: 3 1/2 stars
AMBIENCE: 2 stars
HOW MUCH: $-$$
INFORMATION: (916) 363-3977, www.mamasuesoulfood.comCOUNTER
CULTURE
By Allen Pierleoni
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Call The Bee's Allen Pierleoni, (916) 321-1128.
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