Cornbread

omg this place is awesome. On Springfield Ave, maplewood.


mem - Couldn't find a menu on line. What are their specialties?


I couldn’t find the menu either, but the turkey wings were outrageous, as were the ribs, collards, mac n cheese and the cornbread was really good, more like cake. If they are open tonight we may get take out again. I never eat food like this (mediteranean diet, plus no bread/starch/sugar) but it’s well worth the treat. I had a carb high!


Thanks. It sounds good.


http://cornbreadsoul.com/home


Hmm, not sure why the link didn't work -

http://cornbreadsoul.com/home

Used to be the Publick House.



jamie said:

Hmm, not sure why the link didn't work -

http://cornbreadsoul.com/home

Used to be the Publick House.

The Publick House!


Been wanting to check this place out and happy that they are open. One thing: my grandmother would cringe if her cornbread tasted like "cake." I know many, many folks like cake tasting cornbread but it's not the norm for many families. Our cornbread was not sweet and baked in a cast iron skillet. I'll skip the cornbread -- out of respect to my grandmother -- and taste the rest.  grin 


Went last weekend. Food is excellent. They are in a soft launch phase and working out the kinks.  The processing of orders, whether take out or dine in needs to be smoothed out, but food was worth it. 


kibbegirl I'm with you. I am horrified by sweet cornbread. My mother made her cornbread with no flour. Only white cornmeal. Which is also often preferred by southerners. I can bear some flour, and even a little sugar (maybe a tablespoon), but this other stuff ....


I didn't find the cornbread to be that sweet. The food was great. I would test for yourself.


the cornbread at cornbread was awesome!


From an article I read a while back, it turns out that Southern cornbread preference (sweet vs not) is highly correlated to the race of the people making it: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/food-drink/article68763427.html




qrysdonnell said:

From an article I read a while back, it turns out that Southern cornbread preference (sweet vs not) is highly correlated to the race of the people making it: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/food-drink/article68763427.html

Interesting article, but it doesn't at all match my experience growing up and living in NC (including several years in Charlotte). My dad and I made it something of a mission in life to check out as many BBQ joints as possible, and I don't ever recall having sweet cornbread in any of them. Of course memory is a funny thing, but I don't ever recall sweet cornbread in the South except in breakfast muffins.


Sort of reminds me of the eternal Ashkenazi Jewish debate over whether noodle kugel should be sweet or not. 



ska said:

Sort of reminds me of the eternal Ashkenazi Jewish debate over whether noodle kugel should be sweet or not. 

There is no debate.  Shammai said not sweet, Hillel said sweet.

So noodle kugel is sweet, potato kugel is savory, and anyone who disagrees is a heretic and should be shunned.

 smile 


I actually personally don't have any clue. I haven't spent a ton of time in the South recently and I didn't know about any cornbread taste divide last time I was there. We are planning to visit a friend that lives in Atlanta after Christmas and are tacking on trips to Savannah and Charleston though, so perfect excuse to research!

(And we haven't been to this restaurant yet, but I'm sure we'll make it there soon!)


BrickPig said:



qrysdonnell said:

From an article I read a while back, it turns out that Southern cornbread preference (sweet vs not) is highly correlated to the race of the people making it: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/food-drink/article68763427.html

Interesting article, but it doesn't at all match my experience growing up and living in NC (including several years in Charlotte). My dad and I made it something of a mission in life to check out as many BBQ joints as possible, and I don't ever recall having sweet cornbread in any of them. Of course memory is a funny thing, but I don't ever recall sweet cornbread in the South except in breakfast muffins.



I must be a heretic. Also, my grandmother. Can't stand sweet noodle kugel. 

max_weisenfeld said:



ska said:

Sort of reminds me of the eternal Ashkenazi Jewish debate over whether noodle kugel should be sweet or not. 

There is no debate.  Shammai said not sweet, Hillel said sweet.

So noodle kugel is sweet, potato kugel is savory, and anyone who disagrees is a heretic and should be shunned.

 smile 



I think it is more the texture of the cornbread being like cake rather than it being sweet. Whatever it is, it works.


Interesting mention in the linked article. One of the experts spoke about water milled white corn meal. When I was young, that was what my mother told me to always use. When I've eaten cornbread around Atlanta, it has 'most always been sweet.  We ate at Mary Mac's. It was definitely sweet there. But then, pretty sure the owner is black.


The texture is whether or not the cornbread has flour. But the description of cake is definitely because of the sweetness. The first time I had a corn muffin in NYC I almost spit it out. It just wasn't what I was expecting.


A friend and I are going today so I'll update you all on our experience.

This talk of cornbread brought back fond memories of me as a child, sitting in my great aunt's kitchen, sipping coffee that my great uncle had sugared to perfection (I know! I know!) and eating craclklin' bread (cornbread made with thick bacon slabs) that he made earlier that morning. The sweetness of the coffee mixed with the density and saltiness of the bread made me sooooo happy. #goodfoodmemories oh oh


wish my arteries could eat like that. We often slathered gravy over the cornbread.


The sweet savory discussion is also applicable to grits (another southern favorite). I'm a VA gal and I prefer savory--cornbread and grits.

BTW, I visited Cornbread about a week ago. Lots of potential. A few things to note:

Collards were gritty--def. need to do a better job of rinsing/getting the sand out.

Fried chicken was a bit dry and overcooked--didn't seem like it was cooked to order

and the Fried catfish was a bit too salty (and I LOVE salt).

I will def. go back to give them another chance...for those who go to NYC...try Charles Southern Friend Chicken in Harlem.  THE ABSOLUTE BEST northern soul food spot hands down (Warmdaddys in Philly and Kelseys in Atlantic City come close though).


Woah, woah, woah. Does this place have a liquor license? The drinks listed are Iron Bound Cider and Wine.

That is a very limited offering for one of the rare places with a liquor license. I don't get it. Most places with a liquor license survive on the beverage sales and that supports the kitchen.


Don't think the liquor license from Hathaways carried over to them. According to Yelp reviews, no alcohol. Edited to say I see what you see now on the menu. So either the cider/wine thing is an exception to the requisite license and they can legally do this or they were told they could not but it's still appearing on the online menu.


I just read the Yelp reviews. Apparently you order at a kiosk? I'm not going.


I think there are some special rules that allow NJ wineries to set up "showrooms" in NJ restaurants without a liquor license and then "sell" the wine from those "showrooms" to restaurant patrons on site.


They can't serve wine/beer until they've been open for 90 days.


Delish! Yes, the catfish was a bit salty but very large portions and fried to perfection. My friend loved her fried chicken but not the green beans because she said they were canned. The yams were awesome. So much food we had doggy bags. They do have Ironbound Wine: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet. 


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