Pretty good food just a ways out of Batesville.
Although I've heard Paw Paw's has a good breakfast, I had been wanting to get out there to try their dinners for some time.

First manner of business was finding the place — it's a few miles west of Batesville on highway 6, next to North Delta school. It looks small from the road but is actually a pretty large place.

The setup is kind of strange in that everyone entering must pass the buffet tables. Which is actually kinda nice: you can see what's on offer before sitting down. Behind the buffet is the register and where waitresses seat people. There are boothes and tables of every size, and the walkways are nice and wide. There's no real décor to speak of, just wooden walls and open ductwork. The tables and half-walls are vintage late 70's diner, not that there's anything wrong with that.

The waitstaff seemed friendly and fast but not hurried. My diner friend and I got sweet tea that was actually sweet — not the watered down stuff we get at a lot of other central Mississippi eateries. We decided to start off with some fried pickles.

The pickle slices were about 1/4" thick, which my friend said was unusually large. I wouldn't know, this was my first time having fried pickles! The pickle flavor is muted by the breading but with these large slices, a bit of tartness still came through. The breading was not what I was expecting. It appeared to be some sort of coarse cornflake concoction which was very tasty on its own. The pickles were served with a standard ranch dressing.

We both shied away from the buffet, which had an assortment of fried seafood, BBQ and ribs. Several vegetables were on offer. Instead, my friend chose the BBQ pork plate (~$7.95) and I went for the catfish ($6.95).

He didn't have much to say about the barbeque other than it was a little dry. The sauce was tangy and fruity tasting. The meal came with coleslaw and a slice of Texas toast.

My catfish was good, standard catfish with a cornmeal breading. They served about six smaller fingers. The tartar sauce tasted like Kraft™ or some other storebought type. This meal came with a choice of two sides. I chose green beans and potato salad. Both the vegetables were very good. The beans were tender and savory, the potato salad firm, cool and almost as good as grandma's.

Although we didn't opt for dessert, some were sitting out that looked pretty good. They have an assortment of merengues, key lime and bread pudding, all home made according to the menu.

Overall, it was a decent meal. Nothing spectaular, but they earn points in my book for offering slightly lower prices and still offering some homemade pies and fresh veggies. And of course having good sweet tea helps!    [21 Mar 2009 22:09:27]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Fried pickles, catfish, veggies

     ­Tom Servo, ChefMoz - MS Editor