Stopped by Kellie's Homestead near the Ark Encounter and had a great experience overall. The food was solid Southern comfort, crispy fried catfish, sides were flavorful, and everything felt homemade. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, and the service was genuinely friendly. Only downside was I was hoping to order steak and eggs, but found out breakfast is only served on weekends, which I didn't realize ahead of time. And they were out of an item we initially ordered but got something else. Still, really enjoyed the meal and would definitely come back. read more

See all

Food was great, priced well, and it was clean. Server and hostess were very helpful. Would 100% recommend.

We did pick up Thanksgiving dinner.... $47 for two. It was a ton of food and all of it was delicious. If she has a deal like this for Xmas, get it! read more

See all

My wife and I are traveling through on the way to New York. Terrible service. Really nasty bathrooms. Men's room only had one light working and stunk badly of urine. My wife said that women's restroom was real nasty and there was no hand soap. I had a simple meal of the $10 burger with fries. Fries were old and very stale. Requested fresh order of fries. Took for ever to get, but they were hot and fresh. Just be aware of this place while traveling near Dry Ridge, KY. Nice deco, read more

Terrible experience. The staff seemed rude and inconvenienced by our presence. My husband's chicken was completely raw in the middle. The owner was at the restaurant, and she came across as quite rude. I do not recommend eating here. read more

Update: I live local and come here occasionally. As stated in other reviews, if you go to Kellie's, just give yourself time. You are probably going to wait a while to be seated/place your order, and wait a while to receive the order. Some of their food is really good. I've said it before, but their brussel sprouts are fantastic. I would go just for them (and I almost always order them). And some of their seasonal menu items are also really fun. If you're going to go, just be patient :) read more

Waited over 45 minutes for food at the buffet to be filled, manager extremely rude, food was dryed out and did not taste good. Extremely poorly run restaurant. read more

Very Disappointed with Our Experience My husband and I were really looking forward to dinner tonight, but unfortunately, the experience was extremely disappointing. We both ordered the fried chicken, which the menu states takes about 20 minutes to prepare. We understand and expected that--but it ended up taking an hour and 20 minutes before our meals arrived. When the food finally came, my chicken was cooked well, but my husband's was extremely overdone--three out of four pieces had an almost burnt crust, and the meat was dry and tough. We had both ordered brown gravy for our potatoes, but were given a very small portion. When we asked for more, we were told it had to be brought from the walk-in and warmed up, which was fine--until the additional gravy arrived and was so salty it was inedible. Our waitress noticed my husband's dissatisfaction and said she would have the manager speak to him. She later returned saying she had spoken with Kellie (the owner/manager, I assume), who claimed she didn't see how his chicken could be bad since it was cooked at the same time as mine. As business owners ourselves, we know that if there's an issue, it's important to take one minute to speak directly with the customer--not dismiss their concern without even seeing the problem. The waitress did offer my husband dessert (which he declined) and later offered a deep-fried boneless chicken breast to take home, which he accepted--just so he could have something to eat from our over $50 meal. Overall, the service delay, poor quality of my husband's meal, and lack of genuine management response made this a very disappointing experience. read more

I don't recommend this restaurant. Go to Cracker Barrel in the same shopping center, instead. The waitress failed to tell me that the kitchen prepares everything from scratch and thus would take an unusually long time for me to receive my order. I waited forty minutes for my meal! She didn't bother to give me but one update on the progress of my order. I had mediocre fried chicken livers, Brussels sprouts, and apple walnut slaw. Definitely not worth the wait. read more

Fantastic food liver was awesome!! Will definitely be back for some good ole fashion food.

Food is fabulous and service exceeds southern hospitality! Come hungry! They have great buffets! read more

See all

My and my family just left the ark and was excited to try this restaurant. Big disappointment . Waited over and hour for cold food and my dish which I was ready for, very dissatisfied!!!!!! My food was cold and my potions was nowhere near what it looked like from the last customer had on their page. Mines looks like kids happy meal portions. Not ever coming back. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Beef liver and onions - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

Food was cold and Salad bar was almost empty no mashed potatoes No Orka Service was not that great We don't live here we came from Texas read more

Kelly's is a hometown restaurant and family owned and operated. There was a gift shop as you walk in the door with the local items for sale and swag for Kelly's. We were seated and immediately had a waitress come for the drinks and returned right away. She was awesome with the service. The order came in a reasonable time. The food was good and the place was well spaced so that it didn't feel like we were crowed and could talk and hear each other. Everyone was friendly and helpful. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Pork loin sandwich - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

See all

I had high hopes for this restaurant. However we were sadly disappointed. We showed up at 4pm on a Thursday after a long day of driving. The restaurant concept is a cheap version of Cracker Barrel that was still under construction. We had 3 adults and a two year old in our party. We were not offered a kids menu. The waitress just rattled off what they had. Had I known I was going to pay 8.99 for the 3 bites my two year old had I would have gone a different direction. They were out of fried chicken, brisket, napkins, white gravy and desserts. This is very odd being as they still had dinner service ahead of them. We only found out they were out of things as we ordered them. The restrooms need some serious attention. Both the men's and women's were sweltering and smelled of sewage. It was a large restroom with only one bottle of watered down soap available. The waitress stated Fourth of July for shortages that was almost 6 days ago. Then she stated it's a "from scratch restaurant" and they had a truck mix up. Not having napkins is unacceptable go to Walmart. The food we received was good. The coleslaw was served on a warm plate so that was questionable. They need to clean up and be transparent about what they have available prior to seating customers. read more

Service is very slow we have been here for a good minute now. Man this was a little disappointing my liver was fried to hard . Green's had macaroni in it. I couldn't eat it all just made me mad. I know next time not to eat here. I'm not from here this just disappointed me. Friendly people but like I said service was slow food was not hot. Ambiance was ok. We felt like are food set before it was brought out to us. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Mix greens, liver and broccoli salad. - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

Excellent homemade food at a reasonable price. The servers were friendly. It wasn't busy and I don't know why because everything was good about our experience read more

We traveled from Texas and ate at this restaurant. The food was delicious, especially the Brussel Sprouts and Fried Green Tomatoes! Even though they only had 2 waitresses the service was very good! The staff is friendly and attentive. I highly recommend Kellie's! read more

My stomach hurts and it took them over an hour to deliver that experience. I don't usually post reviews, but this was a truly poor experience. The service was very poor and slow. Over half the menu was unavailable and then it took an hour and almost a half to get my food. I was hoping the food would be the saving grace, but by the time I was done I felt sick to my stomach. Will not be returning. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Shaved steak sandwich with side of fries - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

Food was delicious portion size was good. Atmosphere was noisy & kitchen was struggling...we had a pretty long wait for our food... but we were there on a night a play was going on. read more

Food was great, loved the country fried chicken and the sides were great. Service well I think they were overwhelmed by a party of 12 that sat down when we ordered. Food was warm not hot I think it may sat for awhile,a different waitress served it to us , when I asked the other waitress for my salad she said my waitress would have to get it. So I had a salad for dessert. read more

Delicious!!! We were in Kentucky to see the ark encounter and found this place in a plaza. It was packed and we couldn't get a seat. We decided to come back the next day and try again. It's a pretty big place and they have a lot of tables. My husband and I ordered the piggy piggy with french fries and the deep fried cheeseburger with corn. We split them both. Our favorite was the piggy piggy... It has bacon on it with apple/walnut coleslaw. I don't even like coleslaw and thought this was really great. The deep fried cheeseburger was really good, but I would not have been able to eat one by myself. It's very greasy and not very healthy ... But very delicious! The waitress was exceptional and the price was right at $31 for the entire meal! read more

Cracker Barrel is across the shopping center. They have what you want! -Great value Cracker Barrel Store -Sticky Tables -No Kids Menu, Waitress had to tell us- Was $8-$9 Ea. -No Kids Cups -Salad bar- Fruit Flies -Tried to Order Fish- No Tarter Sauce -Settled for Chicken Fried Steak -They brought out without gravy! Haha -Out of White Gravy- they seriously made it even though they were out of white gravy! -Asked if would take brown gravy, I gave it a shot, but it was a no go - I tried the macaroni and cheese, which our party of 4 each ordered , absolutely disgusting, just overcooked cold noodles with a light coating of yellow something. -I didn't eat and either did my daughter who ordered kids chicken and Mac n cheese -Waitress was very nice, but said she couldn't take anything off the bill without manager or Kelly Lots of other little nasty bits too, but I regress. All in all I didn't let it ruin our day, actually just have to laugh about it. Like I said, just go to Cracker Barrel!! read more

I ordered the fried chicken with Mac n cheese and okra. The okra was really good. I didn't enjoy the Mac n cheese and left it on the plate. The fried chicken was so good the sides didn't really matter. Excellent made to order fried chicken. read more

Service was incredible. Staff are friendly & accommodating. Fried chicken was bland. Arrived at 5:00 on a Friday nite & was told there were no chicken breasts on the bone for the fried chicken dinner. There were no baked potatoes either, yet the menu said available after 4:00pm. I ordered chicken fried steak with white gravy. What I was served was deboned fried chicken breasts. The gravy was watery with curled buttermilk lumps in it. I was told it is made from scratch. Please introduce her to a whisk & flour for thickener. The okra & mashed were delightful. read more

We arrived and was told 35 minute wait but there was multiple empty tables but we thought they must be short waitresses but then we find out after 45 minutes that we couldn't be seated as another bus unloaded they had reservations which they could have told us when we came in and we could have gone somewhere else..we were very disappointed with communication.. can't comment on food since we weren't given that opportunity to be served.. I understand as I left from a local that they do this all the time. read more

Food was awful, service was worse. We waited over an hour for our food, then it came out raw.

Horribly mismanaged. Waited an hour and then the waitress told us they were out of brisket. Empty tables everywhere. They told us they were short of wait staff. read more

The Fried Chicken had a great flavor and was moist. Onion Rings were good too. I had the Derby Pie with whipped cream which was amazing. My wife had a burger which she said was average that came with Lays Potato. read more

We stumbled into Kellie's the other night as we passed through town in the midst of a storm. The place was fairly empty- just a couple groups when we arrived, about an hour and a half from closing. We were surprised when the friendly hostess informed us that Mondays were Family Style friend chicken night. I was unsure about this, however the dinner surpassed my expectations greatly. The chicken was deliciously lightly breaded and perfectly fried. The sides (green beans, biscuits, mashed potatoes, gravy, and coleslaw) were generously sized and tasty. I was happy to see they had sweet tea on the menu! Throughout our meal, our hostess/waitress made sure we were constantly supplied with whatever we might need- drinks, refills on sides, etc. There is a little shop attached filled with all the things you could hope to find- soap, children's toys, lotions, decor, etc. The bathrooms were quite clean and well stocked. I'd like to try this place again when their full menu is available. read more

Everything was sooo good! Excellent, delicious, quality food (!), very friendly service, sweet atmosphere, even smells delicious when you walk in! Wonderful variety on the menu & also very willing to accommodate special dietary requests. Wish I could give more than 5 stars! read more

Food was great, service was above expectations and Kelli's is a great place to have a family gathering. Very welcoming and spacious

Service was amazing especially during a power outage. Our food was delicious and portions were enough for a second meal. (If you're a lite eater, they have that option too! I wish more places did this!) read more

First our waitress was great..she was very embarresed about the food. Now the food....over 30 minutes to get 5 dinners. Only 6 other people in the restaurant at the time. We ordered 4 Country fried steak dinners...3 came out so burned when you cut into them they crumbled apart in peices. The other one when cut into blood came out...no kidding. The Monte cristo that the 5th person ordered was fine. The waitress removed and credited what could not be eaten. So we all left hungry.... Wish I coul read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

See all

I have mixed feelings about this place. Our service and food was not 100% but all I can say is our server did everything she could to make it right. I had the fried catfish with a side of broccoli salad and the Caesar bacon brussel sprouts. The brussels sprouts had a lot of bacon in it so it was almost too much for me but it really was good and on the salty side. The broccoli salad was delicious not the normal as I've known that but very tasty nonetheless. My cat fish could've been hotter. The kid's meal was nice and generous and even came with a free cookie as a nice touch. Service was slow but I think that's the norm these days with the lack of help. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Kids Fried Catfish Strips - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

See all

You Have to EAT HERE!!! Close to Ark Encounter so you must stop for a meal or two. We have eaten dinner here the last 2 days. Lunch today & will come in tonight for dinner. They have great food & good size portions. You will not go away hungry. Great homemade desserts also. You have to eat here!! Ask for Jill to be your server. She is excellent. Steve the chef came out to chat with us. He is an excellent chef. They have Saturday brunch. We were told not to miss it. But we have to head to North Carolina in the morning on our RV journey around the USA. read more

See all

Normally I don't pay attention to reviews but in this case they are right the food is awful!! I had the country fried steak which wasn't steak but breaded hamburger fried in burnt oil!! I've never seen white gravy quite like what was on the meat, it was grainy. The only thing edible on the plate was the green beans!! read more

The restrooms were in a separate part of the building. There were no paper towels in any dispenser in the men's restroom. No electric blowers. Nada. I used my shirt to dry my hands and to open the door. The first thought is - do the employees use this restroom? Do they wash their hands? read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - Restaurant seating area - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky

Well, I cannot give this place a ringing endorsement. Although they took my meal off the bill (without me asking) it was not good. First, staff were not wearing masks. I am not from Kentucky , so maybe that is the norm. I watched the gentleman cleaning tables, leaving food on the table, i saw no cleaning products used. I could see the food left behind from the next table. We really should've left at this point. When the woman took our drink order, I I had noticed that there was an egg roll of the week on the menu. It said to ask what the flavor was. So I asked what the egg roll of the week was "I have no idea" was the response. Not "I don't know but I'll go find out" but just " I have no idea. " The topic was not brought up again. She turned out not to be our waitress so I gave her a pass on that. I ordered a ribeye steak -rare, sweet potato fries with no cinnamon or sugar and Caesar Brussel sprouts. My companion ordered the rib eye with onion rings. When dinner arrived, we noticed he received no onion rings. That is when they told him they were out. I cut into my steak which was seriously less than a quarter of an inch thick. It was well done. But you really can't cook a steak that thin rare. It had a lot of gristle and I just couldn't eat it. When I tasted my sweet potato fries they had cinnamon and sugar on them, but I will say the brussels sprouts were excellent. Our waitress never came back to check on how our food was so I had no opportunity to send my food back. Once my companion was done eating and our waitress came back and asked if I needed a box for my food I told her no. Sense I checked in to this restaurant on yelp there was a coupon that came up for a free dessert. She did give us two. I ordered the molten lava cake. It was cold and of course not molten. It was chocolate cake with a hard piece of chocolate in the middle. I bet if it had been heated up that chocolate would've melted and it would have been molten but that's not how it was served to me. It was free so what can I say. There was a band on this Saturday night. That was the redeeming quality of this place. I don't know the name of the band but they were very good. They played songs from the 70s and 80s. The place was pretty busy, although not packed. I did notice that not only did our waitstaff not wear masks, but they were not wearing masks in the kitchen either. We were staying in a hotel, there were very few options in this area. But my next meal will be somewhere else. read more

See all

I absolutely loved the chicken fried steak. It was 10 ten things I've ever eaten. I'm not kidding. You gotta try it. I will say, my food wasn't too warm. I wish it was hot. But you can tell it was banger. read more

Kellie's Homestead Restaurant - My cleared plate - Southern Near Me - Dry Ridge, Kentucky