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    Emma's Southern Kitchen

    4.6 (219 reviews)
    ModerateTacos, Salad, Burgers
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Emma's Southern Kitchen Photos

    Business Info

    EMMA'S SOUTHERN KITCHEN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Dogs allowed
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Emma's Southern Kitchen

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    Chicken tenders
    Nicole H.

    As longtime supporters of this restaurant, my husband and I have routinely driven 45 minutes each way to dine here. We have brought visiting friends and family, recommended it widely, and visited every few weeks. Unfortunately, our most recent experience raises significant concerns that will likely prevent us from returning. We were seated directly in front of the kitchen, where the door remained open throughout our visit, creating an unusually loud and disruptive environment. The team appeared heavily focused on takeout orders, while dine‑in service felt inconsistent. Our server was polite but struggled to answer basic menu questions, such as the size and thickness of the hamburger patty or details about other entrées. We placed our order--my breakfast burger cooked medium with extra‑crispy fries, and my husband's Cuban sandwich with crispy fries and a side of collard greens. While waiting, we observed what appeared to be our food placed in the window. At that moment, a young employee removed a full trash bag with his bare hands, carried it outside, returned to replace the liner, and then immediately handled our plates without washing his hands. As a former restaurateur, I recognize this as a clear and serious health code violation. I addressed it immediately, asking whether he had washed his hands before touching our plates--knowing he had not. He silently removed the dishes and informed our server that the order needed to be remade. I also overheard the manager explaining to the kitchen staff, in Spanish, exactly why the food had to be redone. A few minutes later, our server returned and vaguely stated that "there was a problem with the order" and it needed to be remade. This was inaccurate, and I clarified that the issue was the employee handling our plates after taking out the trash. The replacement meals arrived quickly, but my burger was cooked well‑done instead of medium, the fries were not crispy, and my husband's collard greens were missing. I declined another remake. Upon returning home, I noticed the interior of my burger had an unusual green tint. As we were leaving, we asked the manager why he never came to speak with us. He insisted he had planned to, despite the fact that our meals were already boxed and we were walking out. He then claimed he did not know what had happened--despite my having overheard him explain the situation to the kitchen. While he did ultimately comp our meal, the lack of transparency was disappointing. We have genuinely loved this restaurant for years, which makes this experience all the more disheartening. Between the health code violation, the mishandling of the situation, and the inaccurate communication from staff and management, I am unsure whether we can return.

    Outdoor beer on a beautiful spring day
    Sam B.

    We had a weekend full of games at the UT games across the street - we ate here three times. We kept coming back for the delicious food, friendly service, and indoor/outdoor seating. Good luck on finding a parking spot!

    Casual porch sitting looking in at the restaurant
    Dj F.

    Great place, outside porch, inside tables, bar area and outside patio Ambiance on point The Texas bird loved French dip as well......yum

    Kids chicken tenders and fries(we had already cut one tender up)
    Christie S.

    We picked up our UT student for a late lunch on a Saturday. I have heard good things about Emma's and have been wanting to give it a try. We were immediately and warmly greeted. We decided to sit outside because it was such a nice day. Our orders were taken right away and in no time we had our drinks. Food did not take long to arrive and everyone in our party enjoyed their meal. Food is fresh and well made. Every single employee we came in contact with was friendly. We will definitely return!

    Chicken fried chicken
    Jill K.

    Great southern food ate outside on the porch to enjoy the weather yet be in the shade. The wait staff was attentive and we got refills before we were empty. Recommend!!

    Fish & Chips ( we got three filets and split it)
    Debra F.

    Thank you for the great service Trinity! We looked this place up when we were staying in town overnight and yelp had some good reviews so we thought we would try it. We got the fish and chips. You could get it with two fillets or three... We got the three fillets and shared it. The pieces of fish were huge and it was delicious! It came with fries that didn't look very appetizing, but they tasted OK. I got collard greens instead of coleslaw and the collard greens were great! We are stuffed! This is a local place very comfortable and casual inside. We enjoyed it. It was worth a stop!

    Side Garden Salad
    Campbell L.

    Food was good. We split Chicken Fried Chicken gravy on the side and a side garden salad. The only complaint was the lemonade was watered down and needed to be changed out but they either couldn't or didn't have time? Service was decent but nothing crazy exciting. Ambiance is very homey and the porch was great.

    Shrimp Tacos
    Layney C.

    I have been coming here for the past 3 years and have never been disappointed. I always get the shrimp tacos which are delicious (Emma's is my go to for shrimp tacos). The aioli sauce that comes with it has a kick (love it)! My husband gets the fish and chips and their tartar sauce is phenomenal. Today was the first time getting a meal for my 1 year old twins. I got them the kids fish and chips. The piece of fish was huge for only $7.99! You can't beat that. Will always support this small business.

    1/2 pickles 1/2 Hb Fried Mushrooms
    Jim P.

    When we walked in, the service setup was confusing so let me break it down for future visitors: do your very best to find parking, walk all the way in to the bar area and they'll tell you to sit where you want and then they'll take care of you. We sat outside because it was a perfect night and I'm so glad we did. There was live music not too loud that my daughter enjoyed greatly. We ordered 2 appetizers because my family can't agree on anything and they were both delicious but WAY more food than expected. The 1/2 pickles 1/2 mushrooms basket is A TON of food!!! The Ranger burger was above average, my wife enjoyed the pulled pork, and the Cuban is ENORMOUS! The fries are amazing but the feelings on the beer Mac and cheese were split between great and meh. We all agreed we wound certainly go here again and explore more of the menu.

    Beef taco salad
    Amy M.

    Yelp to the rescue when it comes to finding small mom and pop businesses. My father in law was visiting us during a road trip. We needed a quick lunch, and a spot near our vicinity. Emma's Southern Kitchen Here we come! Our waitress was sweet and handed us our menus. The restaurant was mid sized and a great place to bring family and friends. I excitedly ordered smoked wings, my better half had tacos, and my father in law had the taco salad. Let's just say my wings were out of this world. This is my opinion. I would love to gate keep this, but feel the need to share so others can eat this goodness;) They were meaty, juicy, fresh with an awesome bite of smokiness. I wish I could've ordered more to take back on our drive home. Oh and the Cole slaw was great too. It was Not overwhelmingly wet, but balanced, and crunchy. All the food was devoured quickly and happily. We would definitely come back!!!

    12 jumbo huge shrimp, man style, and potatoes salad.

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    3 months ago

    Everything was wonderful. Food was delicious and drinks were perfection! The service was great as well. Will definitely come again!

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    6 months ago

    Great food and service. Fun atmosphere. Well worth the drive from the exit on the highway.

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    Ask the Community - Emma's Southern Kitchen

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    Captain Muchachos - Chicken & tuna tacos // carnita nachos

    Captain Muchachos

    4.5(45 reviews)
    6.7 mi
    $$

    Found them due to the Knoxville Vegan Chef Challenge, so this review is a bit delinquent…read more We ordered the roasted sweet potato tacos as a bowl to make it gluten free. We also got the corn salsa and the habernaro salsa, which were both delicious. They were at the South Side garage when we found them, so we got some kombucha and an old fashioned that did not disappoint. Cody was manning the truck that day and he was so friendly, helpful and knew all about how to veganize their food and made any necessary adjustments. He even came into the garage to double check on preparation for us. He gave us service that was exceptional. The food was delicious and we need to find CM again stat! Loved the location and the ambiance of the Garage as well. The one downside is that the "location" calendar was a little hard to use since I wasn't familiar with some of the places listed on it and didn't know where those places were since there weren't address on many of the listings. But, I'm sure that's a software issue they have no control over. If you see the truck, stop! It's worth a visit.

    I was at Southern Skies Music Festival yesterday and got Nachos with chicken for $23. An absolute…read moredisappointment basically a bunch of chips almost no salsa and a few cubes of chicken. Never again for this food truck!

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    Kombucha, Old Fashioned, Habernaro Salsa and Corn Salsa at SouthSide Garage location

    Emma's Southern Kitchen - tacos - Updated May 2026

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