Highest-rated Southern restaurants in Houston 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, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated Southern restaurants in the Houston area using data from Yelp 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 Houston 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.

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1 / 29

#29. Treebeards

- Rating: 4.1/5 (270 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1117 Texas St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Cajun/Creole, Southern, Cafeteria
- Read more on Yelp

2 / 29

#28. The Brisket House

- Rating: 4.1/5 (878 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5775 Woodway Drive Houston, Texas
- Categories: Barbecue, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

3 / 29

#27. The Flying Biscuit Cafe

- Rating: 4.1/5 (671 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 12389 Kingsride Lane Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Southern, New American
- Read more on Yelp

4 / 29

#26. Kulture

- Rating: 4.1/5 (487 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 701 Avenida De Las Americas Ste A Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, Soul Food, New American
- Read more on Yelp

5 / 29

#25. Lindiana's Southern Vegan Kitchen

- Rating: 4.1/5 (108 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 6502 Dixie Drive Houston, Texas
- Categories: Vegan, Southern, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp

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6 / 29

#24. Field & Tides

- Rating: 4.1/5 (675 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 705 East 11th St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, New American, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp

7 / 29

#23. Mia's Table

- Rating: 4.2/5 (253 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1035 Gessner Road Bldg-B Houston, Texas
- Categories: American, Southern, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

8 / 29

#22. Mia's Table

- Rating: 4.2/5 (904 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3131 Argonne St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: American, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

9 / 29

#21. Late August

- Rating: 4.2/5 (68 reviews)
- Address: 4201 Main St. Ste 120 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, Latin American, New American
- Read more on Yelp

10 / 29

#20. The Flying Biscuit

- Rating: 4.2/5 (53 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2404 Navigation Blvd. Ste. 200 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Southern, New American
- Read more on Yelp

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11 / 29

#19. Ray's Real Pit BBQ Shack

- Rating: 4.2/5 (1024 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3929 Old Spanish Trl Ste 300 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Barbecue, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

12 / 29

#18. Dish Society

- Rating: 4.3/5 (1133 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1050 Yale St. Ste 100 Houston, Texas
- Categories: New American, Breakfast & Brunch, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

13 / 29

#17. Dish Society

- Rating: 4.3/5 (441 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4191 Bellaire Blvd. Ste 180 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, New American, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

14 / 29

#16. Gatlin's Fins & Feathers

- Rating: 4.3/5 (320 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 302 West Crosstimbers St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern
- Read more on Yelp

15 / 29

#15. Daily Gather

- Rating: 4.3/5 (667 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 800 Sorella Court Ste 940 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, New American, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

16 / 29

#14. Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken

- Rating: 4.3/5 (1239 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1815 Washington Ave. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, Chicken Shop, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

17 / 29

#13. Goode Eats Southern Cuisine

- Rating: 4.3/5 (53 reviews)
- Address: 10920 Almeda Road Ste 600 Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Southern, American
- Read more on Yelp

18 / 29

#12. The Pit Room

- Rating: 4.3/5 (3190 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1201 Richmond Ave. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Barbecue, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

19 / 29

#11. Truth BBQ

- Rating: 4.4/5 (1194 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 110 South Heights Blvd. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Barbecue, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

20 / 29

#10. State of Grace

- Rating: 4.4/5 (1069 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 3258 Westheimer Road Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, New American, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp

21 / 29

#9. La Lucha

- Rating: 4.4/5 (920 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1801 North Shepherd Drive Houston, Texas
- Categories: Seafood, Southern, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp

22 / 29

#8. Josephine's Gulf Coast Tradition

- Rating: 4.4/5 (220 reviews)
- Address: 318 Gray St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Seafood, Sandwiches, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

23 / 29

#7. Zydeco Louisiana Diner

- Rating: 4.4/5 (281 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1119 Pease St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Cajun/Creole, Southern, Cafeteria
- Read more on Yelp

24 / 29

#6. Glory Cuisines

- Rating: 4.5/5 (20 reviews)
- Address: 989 Ringold St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Seafood, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

25 / 29

#5. The Breakfast Klub

- Rating: 4.5/5 (6413 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3711 Travis St. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Southern, American
- Read more on Yelp

26 / 29

#4. Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken - Houston

- Rating: 4.5/5 (171 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 8110 Kirby Drive Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, Chicken Shop
- Read more on Yelp

27 / 29

#3. Backyard Boil House

- Rating: 4.6/5 (87 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3755 Southmore Blvd. Houston, Texas
- Categories: Seafood, Cajun/Creole, Southern
- Read more on Yelp

28 / 29

#2. Bobobs

- Rating: 4.8/5 (154 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5203 Almeda Houston, Texas
- Categories: Southern, Cajun/Creole, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp

29 / 29

#1. Tipsy Treats

- Rating: 4.8/5 (23 reviews)
- Address: 3839 Southwest Fwy Houston, Texas
- Categories: Food Delivery Services, Southern, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp