If you’re a fan of Southern cuisine with a bit of “upscale” and “modern” sprinkled about, then Southern Goods should be on your short list of restaurants to visit when in Houston.
And they are pretty centrally located in The Heights which is always nice. I actually ate at Southern Goods right when they first opened several months ago. I was wowed by things like the beef belly burnt ends (any self respecting Southerner knows that the charred ends of smoked meat is the best!) with cheese grits and collard greens and the Pig Wings which were smoked pork shanks finished off with a pepper jelly glaze. I swear my husband shed a tear when he ate the pork.
Since it had been a while and we were looking for an early dinner, we decided to make a return visit. We had Thing 1 and Thing 2 and the patio was perfect for them. Lots of space and they got quite a kick out of Mr. Pig in the corner keeping an eye on things.
As usual when we have them, we like to get in early and enjoy the patio when there are relatively few people. And then we can leave before all the “cool” people arrive. But they really are kid friendly during the early hours. As it gets later, they take on more of a bar atmosphere.
The menu had definitely changed some as the aforementioned dishes were no longer on the menu, but not to worry as it was still a fantastic dining experience as still had the same creative focus on Southern cuisine. And even though they don’t have a kids menu printed, they do have a few kids items available.
The Food
This time around we started with the Cucumber Tomato Salad.
I make cucumber tomato salad a lot in my house as its one of the few veggie dishes that never gets an argument from anyone. But I can tell you that my salad is nowhere near as good as this one! In addition to the cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion (which I use in mine), this one had some thick cut bacon and pumpkin seeds tossed in and all of this was laid on top of a deviled egg spread. It really is a fabulous take on two southern classics – deviled eggs and cucumber tomato salad. Delicious!
Next up was the Peaches and Cream.
Wow! This was amazing! When I think of peaches and cream, I of course think of the classic Southern dessert. But this version kicks that version’s butt! This deliciousness consisted of triple cream Brie inside of a light, flaky phyllo dough and topped with peaches, green tomatoes, red onion, and a pepper jelly vinaigrette. And all of this in a delightfully sweet, but light strawberry syrup. What an amazing combination of flavors.
Following the Peaches and Cream was the SG Burger.
Now this was a burger! Double Meat, Double Cheese, Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Pickle served on a Salt & Pepper Bun. The meat (which is ground in house) was perfectly cooked and very juicy. Instead of typical mayo or mustard, it was served Comeback Sauce, which reminded me of fancy thousand island dressing, but is actually a Mississippi invention that’s comprised of mayonnaise and chili sauce. The burger was served with a side of potato salad, but good luck getting to it as the burger was more than enough.
Finally, we tried the Pork Cutlet.
The thin, battered pork was light, crispy, and well seasoned. It was served over a mashed potato and corn combo and topped with a delicious mushroom andouille gravy and green onion (because green onion makes everything taste better). Very rich and very decadent.
The Drinks
Southern Goods is rightfully known for its beer selection (they have over 20 beers on tap along an impressive tap wall) as well as its cocktails. But I’m all about the wine and while the list was not extensive by any means, I really liked the selection and variety. Portugal, Chile, South Africa, Austria, amongst others were represented. Just a really diverse selection of wines to go with the wonderful cuisine. Very nice in the Houston wine scene. Nothing drives me crazier than going to a restaurant where eighty percent of the list is comprised of Cabs. I’ve even been in seafood restaurants that have menus that are heavy on raw fish as well as light, flaky fish and yet they will still stock an overwhelming selection of California Cab. I like a nice Napa Cab as much as the next person, but it definitely has a time and a place. And as much as I liked the selection itself, what was even better was that the wines were generally very affordable. There really wasn’t anything that would break the bank.
In addition to the wines on the list, they also had a few extra Rosés available.
I ended up trying the Chateau Vignelaure La Source Coteaux d’Aix en Provence.
This was such a lovely wine with nice citrus notes and was very crisp and refreshing. A perfect patio sipper. It’s comprised of Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, and Cabernet Sauvignon. I really loved it with the Peaches and Cream. And while I toyed with the idea of the Argyle Rosé, it’s really hard to miss me with a Rosé from Provence.
So my return to Southern Goods definitely hit the spot. I just need to make sure I don’t wait as long to visit again.
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