Full Parking Lot Award: Cookie’s Soul Food Kitchen

Posted August 4th, 2009 by Sheila

Cookie's Soul Food Kitchen restaurant in Ames Texas (photo by Sheila Scarborough)On a hot, muggy day in July, I drove through the tiny town of Ames, Texas (because the back roads always beat the tar out of the Interstate.)

Next to the highway leading into Ames was a small wooden painted sign on the ground – “Welcome to Ames, Texas, home of Cookie’s Soul Food Kitchen.” Soul food sounded good to me!

I found Cookie’s on the other side of the railroad tracks that paralleled the road; it was in a bright yellow welcoming building with red trim.

What was my final traveler’s criteria for a restaurant thumbs up on a Sunday in rural southeast Texas between noon and 1 p.m.?

That’s right….the parking area all around Cookie’s was jammed with vehicles. That’s a no-brainer signal to one’s Personal Local Grub Radar.

I had a lovely buffet meal for the princely sum of $8.99 – chicken, pork, ox tail, collard greens, black-eyed peas, mashed potatoes and banana pudding for dessert.

As a single, I was seated next to a delightful local guy who turned out to be a Navy veteran and a drag racing fan, just like me. Don’t you know we talked up a storm! He even gave me a story idea about a local event that I’m pitching right now to one of my favorite travel magazines.

All you need is a sense of adventure, willingness to jump at the unexpected and a well-tuned food radar.

Cookies is open 11 am – 2 pm Mon-Fri, closed on Sat and open 11 am – 3 pm on Sunday. Entrees rotate each day (things like meatloaf, fried catfish, baked chicken) and a variety of vegetables are available on the side.  You can get sandwiches, too.  Phone (936) 336-1954.

(Note: Soul food hits the spot, but find some coffee afterward or you may do the full-belly doze-off while driving.)

This post is included in the latest Wanderfood Wednesday on the Wanderlust and Lipstick blog.

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10 Responses to “Full Parking Lot Award: Cookie’s Soul Food Kitchen”

  1. Melanie Haiken Says:

    Wow, Cookies sounds like my kind of place. Great soul food is worth driving far and wide for. I will try to dig up the name of a great place east of Sacramento that had the best corn grits I’ve ever had…. Thanks for telling us about Cookies!

  2. Fly Girl Says:

    Full-belly doze is right! This buffett sounds deadly to any diet and I haven’t eaten breakfast yet. Was there any cornbread with all those goodies?

  3. Sheila Says:

    Hmmm, their main menu meals include corn bread and dessert, but I’m going blank on whether I saw any with the Sunday buffet. Can’t imagine it wasn’t there….guess I’ll have to go back and see. :)

  4. jessiev Says:

    LOVE this. i think we need to get down to TX. that is so cheap. i love that you talked so much with your neighbor there – and got a story idea!

  5. marina k. villatoro Says:

    These are the only types of places I really like to eat at! They have true ’soul’.

    In Costa Rica these types of a little places are called Sodas, and in Guatemala Comedores, we try to only eat at these places!

  6. Sheila Says:

    The whole experience was an unexpected bonus to my day, that’s for sure!

  7. Sheila Says:

    They are indeed yummy. Thanks for visiting from Latin America!

  8. Wanderluster Says:

    Some might disagree with me, but having spent a lot of time in the south, I can attest that “soul” is something that we are missing here in the NW. I love little finds like this. Subtract the meat and this is just the kind of place that I’d love to check out – even if my plate was filled with only mashed potatoes and banana pudding.

  9. Sheila Says:

    Yeah, the PacNorWest is rather, er, removed from a lot of the traditions and dishes that originated in the American South. Cookie’s seemed to have a lot of veggies available (very good collard greens – did I mention that?) so any vegetarian wouldn’t have a problem, although I can’t vouch for meat-free cooking methods or seasonings.

    Plenty of okra available, too, and I totally forgot to mention the watermelon, which was super-juicy and red, since it’s the height of summer here.

  10. Paula Says:

    What a great adventure. It’s always satisfying to find a spot off the beaten path that serves excellent food at a cheap price. Thanks for sharing.

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