Not what you would except when you think about going to a soul food place. The decor is extremely old and needs to be updated. Felt a bit dingy in there, but we came for the food. The bar was busy when we went in and quite loud for such a small establishment. The service was fine, but the food was surprisingly good, because I'll admit I had my doubts. But the thing we came for did not disappoint, which was the food. I had the whiting platter with a side of greens that were delicious. My compliments to the chef. read more

Mama Joy's Kitchen - Red Fried Whiting Platter - Southern Near Me - Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

We found Mama Joys Kitchen on door dash. Absolutely the best soul food on the planet. We live in HH, raised in the south and we know good soul food. We spoke with Joy after our meal tonight and thanked her and her team for their outstanding restaurant. Support Mamas, you won't be sorry. read more

Ended up at this little hole-in-the-wall spot where all the locals eat, and I get why! Good, flavorful soul food that hits the spot. Feels like a dive bar but with amazing food. Everyone loved their meals and our waiter was super friendly. Only request is that the portion of the sides were bigger. I will say this restaurant has like 5 tables but not an issue because it wasn't crowded when we went. read more

The food is good authentic soul food. Delicious and well spiced, but not over spiced. Gizzards, livers, okra done two ways! So many yummy old favorites made just right. Portions are generous. We loved every bite. read more

The place is a hole in the wall but that's okay. The cook and server were very friendly. I ordered the two piece dark meat chicken which came with one side and cornbread. It took forever to get our food. When they brought me the plate I had two legs and a thigh, which was plenty of chicken. The cold slaw was good and the piece of cornbread was no bigger than my thumb. It was delicious and I would have liked a normal size piece. The chicken though plenty was so over cooked that it was dried out. My husband said his breast of chicken was huge but again, way over cooked and dried out. read more

Had their red rice and collard greens at the Hilton Head Seafood Festival the food was flavorful and hot. Would like to visit the restaurant next time I'm back on the island. read more

Great fried chicken and shrimp spot, disguised as a dive bar. Even though I take issue with some of the other reviews mentioning sides saltiness and sides, I thought the collards were great as were the mashed potatoes and gravy. Part of my party had the Mac and Cheese and raved about it. Very Cheers-like with locals at the bar. Waitress was great with very attentive service....looking forward to going back! read more

Got the lunch plate with brisket, mashed potatoes, baked beans, and Mac and cheese I must say they were the best beans I ever had for the price you can't beat it. The service was nice and got my food quickly. It is also a very nice place to be with the cornhole and foosball definitely a great place to eat and hangout with family. read more

this is a hidden gem of a restauran! the shrimp basket was perfectly blackened. Fries hot out of the fryer. Mac and cheese was really good too. cornbread like your grandma used to make it. Interesting and friendly locals at the bar. when you are done, go to the chocolate shop next door! read more

At first glance we weren't sure if we were at the right place. I believe this restaurant had a different name up until recently. Nonetheless, the food was great and the service was equally the same. My main complaint is the portions could be bigger when factoring in the price. The ambience is dive bar-ish. The bathrooms could definitely be kept up with a little more. But if we're talking food and service this place passes with flying colors. read more

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Word of mouth carries a lot of weight for a lot of restaurants and Mama Joy is definitely one of those restaurants.Don't let the place deceive you. Looking for some good, down home, soul food then Mama Joy is the place. Delicious homemade soul food cooked by Mama Joy herself. Attending a conference for work, a co-worker and I ventured out to Mama Joy's Kitchen after hearing about it from another coworker who was visiting with family the week prior. She raved about how delicious the food was so I made a point to put it on my list of places to visit while in town. Finding it was a little difficult. My GPS took me slightly passed the entrance. Once I got there, I saw a sign out front in the grass but could not find the storefront with the same name. It's located in a little strip mall not too far from where we're staying, So we went in and asked if we were at the right location and we were. Nothing much to brag about on the inside as far as the decor, but you will get some of the best homemade soul food in the area. I ordered the oxtails and the jerk wings and my coworker ordered the meatloaf sandwich. I got a side of Lima beans and some cornbread and Everything was delicious. I mean delicious!! I will definitely be sharing this gem of a place with others so they can try for themselves. Mama Joy stepped from behind the kitchen as we were preparing to leave and introduced herself to us. Sweet lady who we thanked so much for the meal. We told other patrons good night and went home belly full. read more

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Food: I give this place a B+. The taste was fantastic, even the macaroni & cheese. My only issue was with the sides sizes. They are too small. If they gave about 1/2 cup more, it would be great. Service: A+. Friendly folks, just the right amount of attention. Ambiance: A. Cozy and charming. read more

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NOT WORTH IT! My family and I thought we were about to patronize a restaurant that specialized in delicious soul food, as suggested by the online menu. When we entered the door of Mama Joy's Kitchen, we were surprised to find people sitting at a bar with just two dining tables. The bartender told us to select a table, then he brought over menus. Everything went downhill from there. During the time we waited for our drinks to be delivered, we had time to look around this dark, filthy establishment. The rug on the dining floor was not only dirty but worn out in places. Both of the tables were placed directly in front of the restroom. At this point, we considered leaving with ordering just appetizers to eat with our drinks, but we decided to see if the food was going to live up to its online descriptions. The food was MEH--all three orders. SO sorry I forgot to take a photo of our meals! My collard greens were too salty, the whiting fish and the chicken wings needed seasoning, and the mac 'n cheese was not cheesy--at all. A word or two about the service: non-existent. We were not offered water or refills. No mention was made of the "Daily Special," though we saw something was written on a board near the bar. We were so ready to leave after paying the bill, and yes, leaving a tip of just 10%. I can assure readers of Yelp reviews, we will not patronize Mama Joy's Kitchen on future trips to HHI. read more

Th food was good, could've came out hotter. I had the whiting fish which was great, the Mac n cheese was just ok. My husband has the Salisbury steak he said tasted like a hamburger with gravy. Now the bar lady that served us need to take a class in customer service and not argue in front of customers o I forgot , she was arguing with a customer read more

Food was great. Piping hot and seasoned to perfection. More than enough food for now and some for later too. read more

Mama Joy's Kitchen - a plate of food - Southern Near Me - Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Deviled eggs to die for and the best fried chicken !!! Everything feeds your soul !! Sides awesome so is cornbread ! read more

If you're looking for real SOUL FOOD, HEAD STRAIGHT to Mama Joy's Kitchen! Her red rice, collard greens, oxtails, fried chicken and the BEST CORNBREAD this side of the equator! I also love her Cajun rasta pasta, seafood pasta, okra and tomatoes... just too much to name. All that along with a beautiful smile from a girl from the lowcountry. You taste it in her every bite! Check her out, you won't be disappointed. read more

The food and the customer service was excellent. Been a while since I've had comfort food that taste like a authentic homemade meal. The Oxtails fell off the bone and don't get me started on the gravy! My husband got the meatloaf which he said was the best he's had. My son got the Chicken fettuccine. We will definitely be back! read more

Mama Joy's Kitchen - Peach cobbler - Southern Near Me - Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

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I had a delicious lunch! I ordered a small portion of oxtails over rice and my side was tomato and okra. It came with a slice of corn bread. read more

Mama Joy's Kitchen - Oxtails over rice! - Southern Near Me - Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Ordered the fish dinner. It was good, the fish was very good, potato salad was sweet (not my favorite) , greens were ok. Side portions were slim, not ice cream scoop size, cornbread was good but tiny piece. Got the pound cake, that too was slim for 6.00. To me 16.00 for the fish dinner (two pieces of fish) is over priced. Whiting fish dinner is not easy to find in these parts. I won't go back often, but will try them again. read more

Mac n cheese was good. I didn't care for the meatloaf and the mashed potatoes seemed like they were from a box. It was mostly a dive bar. Three loud females at the bar were cussing loudly. Not exactly the family atmosphere that you might think of when you hear Mama Joys. read more

So when you pull up, you think your in the wrong place cause the signage is for the previous place, but we really wanted some good Soul Food. Luckily we called and we knew we were in the right place, from the instant phone conversation, to the brief interaction when we walked in, The atmosphere wasn't high scale, it was more laid back, which is what we wanted. The food was OMMMMMMGGGGGGGG good and filling, were stuffed, I had the smothered pork chops, my wife had the oxtails. We know bad soul food and this wasn't that... So we're here for a week, we will be back before we go back home, Only thing I ask: Quit being stingy with that cornbread, that bread was banging Thanks Happy, Full and Satisfied customer, Buffalo,Ny 8/21/22 read more

Ordered several things thru Door Dash, paid a grip and all we received was a sad piece of cheesecake. Tried calling the restaurant, to see if they could help in resolving the issue and the guy that answered was extremely rude. I will also advise the resort where we are staying of this poor lack of service or professionalism. read more

Really really really great food!! The service is off the charts!!! Really nice person(Joy), really friendly and can tell some amazing jokes!! read more