Highest-rated Southern Restaurants in Dallas by Diners

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Highest-rated Southern restaurants in Dallas 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 hush puppies 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 Dallas using data from Yelp. Data is as of June 11, 2024. 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 10 reviews were considered. In an effort to highlight independent restaurants and local chains, restaurants with more than five locations nationally, based on the Yelp data, were not included.

Read on to find the perfect spot to get a taste of the South near you.

Note: The photos in this article are stock images and do not necessarily depict the specific restaurants listed or the dishes they serve.

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#25. Brew City Kitchen and Cocktails

- Rating: 3.1/5 (56 reviews)
- Address: 3427 East Trinity Mls Road Ste 700 Dallas, Texas
- Categories: soul food, southern, cocktail bars
- Read more on Yelp

#24. Elm Street Cask & Kitchen

- Rating: 3.2/5 (113 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1525 Elm St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, breakfast & brunch, bars
- Read more on Yelp

#23. Tasty Tails

- Rating: 3.5/5 (225 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4950 Beltline Road Ste 190A Dallas, Texas
- Categories: seafood, cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#22. Flying Fish

- Rating: 3.5/5 (282 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5100 Belt Line Road Ste 740 Dallas, Texas
- Categories: seafood, cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#21. Catfish Connection

- Rating: 3.6/5 (147 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2464 West Kiest Blvd. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: seafood, southern
- Read more on Yelp

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#20. Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley

- Rating: 3.6/5 (1382 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 1933 Elm St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, comfort food
- Read more on Yelp

#19. Henderson Chicken

- Rating: 3.6/5 (28 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 337 East Ledbetter Drive Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, chicken wings, soul food
- Read more on Yelp

#18. Norma's Cafe

- Rating: 3.6/5 (377 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 9100 North Central Expy Ste 151 Dallas, Texas
- Categories: american, breakfast & brunch, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#17. Jonathon's Diner

- Rating: 3.7/5 (268 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1619 North Beckley Ave. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: new american, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#16. JD's BBQ and Grill

- Rating: 3.7/5 (42 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 311 West Jefferson Blvd. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: barbeque, southern
- Read more on Yelp

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#15. Chicken House

- Rating: 3.9/5 (111 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 909 North Fitzhugh Ave. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: comfort food, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#14. Flying Fish

- Rating: 3.9/5 (253 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 6126 Luther Lane Preston Center Dallas, Texas
- Categories: seafood, cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#13. Hamilton's Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge

- Rating: 3.9/5 (34 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1011 South Akard St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: bars, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#12. Ellen's

- Rating: 4.0/5 (3508 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1790 North Record St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, american, breakfast & brunch
- Read more on Yelp

#11. Flying Fish

- Rating: 4.0/5 (305 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1838 Irving Blvd. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: seafood, cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

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#10. The Porch

- Rating: 4.1/5 (1671 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2912 North Henderson Ave. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, new american, sandwiches
- Read more on Yelp

#9. Southern Classic Daiquiri Factory

- Rating: 4.1/5 (169 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3030 Ross Ave. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#8. Norma's Cafe

- Rating: 4.1/5 (584 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1123 West Davis St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, american, diners
- Read more on Yelp

#7. Bucky Moonshine's

- Rating: 4.1/5 (598 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2912 Elm St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: cajun/creole, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#6. Celebration

- Rating: 4.2/5 (695 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4503 West Lovers Lane Dallas, Texas
- Categories: american, southern, desserts
- Read more on Yelp

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#5. Whistle Britches - Dallas

- Rating: 4.2/5 (1682 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 6110 Frankford Road Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, beer bar, american
- Read more on Yelp

#4. Palmer's

- Rating: 4.2/5 (360 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 6465 East Mockingbird Lane Ste 316 Dallas, Texas
- Categories: southern, comfort food, food trucks
- Read more on Yelp

#3. JGs Old Fashioned Hamburgers

- Rating: 4.3/5 (319 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 12101 North Greenville Ave. Ste 109 Dallas, Texas
- Categories: burgers, american, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#2. Pecan Lodge

- Rating: 4.3/5 (6566 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2702 Main St. Dallas, Texas
- Categories: sandwiches, barbeque, southern
- Read more on Yelp

#1. Smackbird Hot Chicken

- Rating: 4.4/5 (100 reviews)
- Address: 17437 Preston Road Cowboy Chicken Dallas, Texas
- Categories: chicken shop, southern, fast food
- Read more on Yelp

This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Rasha Aly, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 143 metros.

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