Alana Dao wrote had an article at Bitter Southerner last year, An Ode to Luby’s & The Southern Cafeteria: If you’ve ever walked a tray along a rail — looking for green Jell-O salad, hot buttered rolls or mile-high strawberry shortcake — you know the assembly line that is a Southern cafeteria.
In Alabama, it wasn’t Luby’s, it was Morrison’s (and while Picadilly owns all the Morrison’s in existence now, one of those retains its name under agreement, the one in Mobile).
Morrison’s Cafeteria was the default for my Nanny and PawPaw going to eat at the Gadsden Mall: it was always a sure bet to please everyone, not that it was completely delicious, but it was good enough and plenty of choices. I loved the turkey and dressing, the pear salad (so grown up!), the bejeweled cubes of jello with the whipped cream and maraschino cherry segment atop for dessert. Extra hungry? Rather than jello, the apple dumpling — so fancy with its pastry casing, the one dessert alone with the hot food options.
I loved when the woman at the register at the end of the line would ring the doorbell signaling for someone to come help little, young me take my platter.
Here, a cafeteria mix-tape — not all the ones I have pictures from, just the ones that come to mind first:
Niki’s West, Birmingham AL
Now shuttered, The Smokehouse in Birmingham AL — feeling a little fancy? Sit in the back:
a little less so? More homey here:
Also shuttered, Maggie’s in Tuscaloosa:
Swett’s, Nashville:
Sarris Restaurant, Birmingham:
Mary’s Southern Cooking, Mobile:
Arnold’s Country Kitchen in Nashville:
Shuttered, Niki’s Downtown (not Niki’s West) in Birmingham, which blessedly had pastitsio:
Mrs B’s Home Cooking, Montgomery:
Uncle Mick’s Cajun Cafe, Prattville AL:
The Four Way in Memphis:
Betty Mae’s in Huntsville AL:
Minnie’s Uptown in Columbus GA:
The White House in Warrior AL:
The Colonnade in Atlanta:
Victoria’s Cafe, Jasper AL:
Long gone, never forgotten Belle Meade Cafeteria in Nashville:
Shapiro’s in Indianapolis:
Interesting how they do their deviled eggs:
I saw an old Pioneer Cafeteria tray at a kitchen I once picked up at for United Way’s Meals on Wheels when I volunteered:
Eagle’s in Birmingham:
Sisters of the New South in Savannah:
The wild yellow chicken and dressing at the Cedar House Cafeteria in Tarrant AL:
Magnolia Room Cafeteria in Tucker GA:
The Irondale Cafe in Irondale AL:
Honey from the Rock Cafe, Augusta GA:
S&S Cafeteria, Knoxville TN:
Weaver D’s in Athens GA:
