When I think of southern food, I usually think of fried chicken, peach cobbler, and a biscuits. When I think of soul food, I usually think of fried chicken wings, corn bread, black eyed peas, collard greens, mac and cheese....I think of soul food a lot. When I went to Gladys Knight's Fried Chicken and Waffles in Atlanta, I experienced perhaps one of the best southern meals that I've ever had. The restaruant, parked along Peachtree St. just a few blocks down for the historic Georgia Terrace Inn and across from a hospital and the Bank of America building, was everything you would expect in a great southern restaurant, and more. A great indication of food quality is the wait time (around 45 min to an hour, but you can make reservations)....we enjoyed our first meal so much that we returned there later that week, and we were only in Atlanta for three days. But as it was our first meal, it really started off the trip well. We started off with fried green tomatoes, which were sliced very thin and served with the typical pepper sauce. Our table split a peach waffle that melted in your mouth, and I had fried chicken, fried corn (a really great, unusual staple), fried okra and corn bread. But what really stole the show were the fried chicken and corn bread. I have eaten a lot of fried chicken in my life, so from my extensive experience, I will defintely say that this was one of the best, if not the best, fried chicken that I have ever had. It was moist and crunchy, and extremely flavorful. The cornbread was sweet and had a terrific mouth feel (which sounds strange to describe) but it was buttery and crumbled into your mouth. I ordered extra cornbread and didn't share it.

Fried Chicken and Waffles is a very popular soul food staple. As it was my first experience, and having come from Miami, where there aren't restaurants of this depth readily availible, I was perhaps a little overexcited. While the peach cobbler did nothing for our table, and the waitress who served us was very resistant to smile, we left the dinner satisfied and even hungry for more. The ambiance was pleasant: it evoked a feeling like the restaurant had been there forever.

Food is generally rated on several different levels, i.e. the comparison between chicken and waffles compared to ceviche and seafood cioppino at Azul. But the next day, I felt myself salivating for more, and I couldn't wait to go back.

For those of you who are keeping track, I have not yet been to a restaurant worthy of AAAA. Ever. It is ar  rating I will reserve perhaps for Daniel in NYC (maybe that will be my first AAAAA), but at least Michy's in Miami.

So my rating for Gladys Knight's is AA. If you're ever in Atlanta, GO THERE.

Dress- casual.
Price- $-$$