Food is wonderfully seasoned, great selection and just great food!!! Also excellent service and location!!

Good food, good service, clean restaurant; exactly what I expected. Helen's also caters and does a great job with that. read more

Great food great service great atmosphere visiting family in the area will be back was that there the day before Thanksgiving and there was lots of pies on the tables that had been ordered to go read more

Helen's is a little roadside cafe in a rural area of Jackson County Tennessee. The food is good and I have eaten there many times. They are friendly and the service is very good. It is not a fancy place, but it is clean and orderly. There are several great options on the menu. There is usually a meat and 3 option for under $10. The burgers are good. Hamburger steak is good. There are some good higher end options as well like steak, grilled chicken. Shrimp and salmon, and all you can eat fried fish on the weekends. There is also a good seafood feast. I have not been disappointed. read more

Best local "country" cooking. Always good customer service from the staff. Highly recommend the fried pork chops!

This is a place I visit with family a few times, and now I can see why! Helen's is the one of the BEST restaurants you can find here in Tennessee. The food is delicious like if it was homemade, and even I tried their banana pudding there, and it was LEGENDARY!!! I'm now out of words, but all I can say is, GO TRY THIS PLACE IMMEDIATELY!!! This restaurant is always going to be considered a revelation to me and the entire state of Tennessee. Highly Recommend it!!! read more

Great down home cooking at a very good price point. The service is excellent, staff is friendly and the place is a neat and clean family atmosphere. read more

The servers at Helens were so prompt and polite. You don't just have one server for your table, all servers ask if you need anything! Hubby had the all you can eat fish, Mac n cheese and beans, friend had the Reuben and I had fried chicken and mashed potatoes. Everything was really good. read more

Family run and what a family! You really get a sense that you are a part of their lives and this family is loved by it's community. They serve each person the same as they open their doors or stay latter to offer you a late dinner at closing. Maybe it's the people but the food doesn't hurt either! Traditional and made with plenty of love and care! read more

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Always friendly, fast service. Food is hot. Catfish is great. I wanted to try the variety of the seafood platter to see what I liked. I'm not a crab cake person. Clam strips were doughy. Shrimp were delicious, as was the catfish, slaw, and fries. Oysters perfectly done, just not my thing. read more

On weekends they have all you can eat catfish. You can get it grilled or fried. They have great Cole slaw. And for an appetizer, you can't beat the fried mushrooms. read more

They must've changed cooks or something. I had the catfish dinner w/onion rings and coleslaw. None of it was the same or good. The hush puppies weren't sweet and were burnt. The onion rings were grease soaked. The catfish had a ton of cornmeal. I was very disappointed for $20. The service wasn't the norm either. read more

What a gem. Pure comfort food that is well prepared and reasonably priced. Waitstaff was friendly and efficient. The place was clean and decorated for Christmas. Will definitely be back! read more

Better half brought me here since she grew up going here. Parking lot was packed, but there was ample seating inside. Was told to grab an open seat. Order was prompt, and the food was pretty quick (country fried steak for me, burger for her). It was hot and tasty. Only hiccup was they didn't get my salad, but that was promptly rectified by our waitress. Overall, a nice place for comfort food. read more

Discovered this restaurant is closed for remodeling. We stopped expecting to eat lunch but it is closed. No opening date was posted.

I had dinner with my mom, aunt, and fiance here. Three of us had the all-you-can-eat fish, my aunt opted for the pork chops. We debated between two and three starts throughout the meal, but as my fiance pointed out, they should receive three since my mom requested a second serving of fish. Must not be that bad, right? We went there hoping for catfish only to be let down. I called earlier to make sure they had it and they said they did. But when we asked about the all-you-can-eat fish, our server said it wasn't catfish and wasn't sure what kind of fish it was. So then I asked if I could just have the catfish entree on the menu and she said they didn't have any catfish at all. The mystery fish was a plain-ol' white fish of some kind. Pretty flavor-less breading. Hush puppies and fries were pretty bland as well. See where this is heading? Two stars. But then my mom asked for a second round. And then... I ordered a slice of pie. That's what did it for me. That slice of coconut cream sealed the three-star deal. It had more coconut than I ever had before in a pie. Everyone else at the table turned up their nose when I first ordered it yet they all helped me finish it. Helen's has been here for a long time and it's probably one of the better options in the area. We came all the way from Celina for it but I'm not sure we'll do that again. read more

Good for a mom and pop country quick meal. Very crowded inside, too many tables in the space. Nothing special or very clean looking.

Excellent fast service, Phenomenal food (taste and quality), Low prices!! A hidden GEM!!! Highly recommend!!! Worked at a high-volume restaurant for many years- Helen's is a must!! Love the catfish, fried onion rings, okra and pickles!!! read more

Been their twice and usually with a big crowd. The catfish is not catfish, but they will lie and tell you it is. The vegetables are all from a can and the mashed potatoes are instant. Gainesboro is a dying little town with nothing to offer but drugs scams and increased taxes. Im not sure what the owner could do in order to better this place. read more

Always friendly service, and the food is always fresh. I don't think we have ever had a bad experience at Helen's. A must go around the holidays the owner decorates it beautifully and my children love it!!! read more

Helen's Restaurant - All you can eat catfish with fries and hush puppies...delicious - Comfort Food Near Me - Gainesboro, Tennessee

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The wife and I were out driving and came by and place was packed. Sunday crowd was left over so we went in. Catfish was excellent. Deserts were also excellent with Choc. and Coconut pie being our choice. You can't go wrong with these place. We will go back perhaps tomorrow. 60 miles away but worth it. Barry Nashville read more

Stopped by today after walking Cummins Falls. Saw review on yelp and decided to stop in. Service and staff was quick, efficient and friendly. I had the roast sandwich with mashed potatoes and brown gravy. Great home style food. Would definitely come back and recommend to any one wanting home cooking. read more

Great place to eat! Their all you can eat fish is delicous and make sure you try a slice of one of their homemade pies for dessert!

Been going for years. Stopped recently and had dinner. Ordered the open-faced roast beef sandwich. It was okay....small portion on the beef and it was dry and cold. Mashed potatoes and gravy was good and received a good sized portion. read more

I've driven by this place hundreds of times without stopping. Finally stopped for lunch. I was right all those other times. Pros: The Christmas display was nice and our server was pleasant. Cons: Instant mashed potatoes and veggies from a can that were clearly just warmed up with nothing added; I don't know that they really cook anything there. The bathroom was so dirty I would have left if going in there before eating. My girlfriend was sick within thirty minutes of leaving. read more

Amazing southern food and desserts. Very nice people. Try the banana pudding !!! It is the best.

Since 2 1/2 stars wasn't an option I chose 3. I've taken my family there 5-6 times and nothing was bad but nothing was great either. I love country cooking so it would be great if they hired someone to add a little flare to their currently plain entrees. read more

Always a safe bet! By far the best fried fish (ask for "rooster sauce" aka: siracha : trust me!) in the area! The hamburger steak is also great! Helen's service couldn't be better! The waiters connect with the customers unlike any other restaurants I've been to. It's very convenient to go by and pick up a delicious home made pie or gallon of fresh brewed sweet tea on the way to wherever you are going. read more

Excellent service and the fish, all you can eat, is outstanding. I went by there one day and called in a burger, and it was delicious. Finally, a REAL burger. read more

Good specials! Friendly staff! We came by after our trip from Nashville (where we live) to Cummins Falls and were not disappointed. This restaurant reminds me of my old hometown spots. read more

If my Mama was still alive, she would have been jealous. Honest to God good food & service every time. The worst we ever had there was just good and goes up from there. We love the veggies! Most desserts are homemade. We even used them to cater a Wedding Rehearsal dinner! If there was something you think should be mentioned or not totally happy with, the owner (Ms. Pippin) makes it right. read more

I have heard for a long time how good their fish was. My wife and I decided to try it. She doesn't like fish so she had a Burger. It was as plain as it gets plus cold. My fish tasted like anything but fish so we left most of the food on the table and left. About a year later I told my wife let's try it once more that something had to be wrong because of what I had heard for a long time. This time it was no change. If anything a little worse. I was watching the cook take the frozen fish out of a cardboard box and stick it in a deep fryer which the fish was pre breaded. Probably direct from Institutional wholesale in Cookeville. This fish as before taste neutral. Like nothing except maybe a piece of cardboard.....I can say honestly this was the worst meal I have ever had. I don't know what these people have been smoking that thinks the fish was good....It's terrible.....We won't be back read more

My friends and I were looking for a local place to eat after hiking at Cummings fall. We found a gem here. Everything was homemade from scratch and the service was so friendly. The food was total comfort food and we all enjoyed our meals. The homemade desserts were epic and I'm not even a sweets guy. I had the all you can eat catfish and it was sooooo delicious. Do yourself a favor and check this restaurant out. read more

this place had the best sweet tea i've ever tasted. the fried pickles were absolutely amazing and the chicken fingers with curly fries were banging. this place made me feel like home and had many things that sounded so good on the menu. excellent service and friendly workers read more

I have been to Helen's when Helen owned it, now her daughter Carol does. I have always enjoyed eating there and the food and service is always great there. I really enjoying going after my granddaughter's soccer game on Saturdays with my aunt and grandchildren. However, this past Saturday was a different story. The food was great like always (I love their grilled cheese burger) but the service was terrible at best. We ordered tater babies (if you have never had them you need to) and we received tater tots. I had to keep asking for more to drink, also had to ask for ketchup. The waitress had hair in her face and I wondered if she could ever see what she was doing. At the end of the meal I asked for a large tea to go and she gave me a small drink only half full. I always tip because I know how hard a waitress has to work, but this time I didn't. I would be more understanding if the restaurant was even half full that day but there was only one gentleman there when we got there and was almost done before other people started coming in. About half of the time we were there, we were the only ones there. I love Helen's and will go back for sure, just not when that waitress is there. read more