Pass the Okra- Kalamazoo Is Getting Another Soul Food Restaurant

Another? Find out about the other three places to get ribs, collards, cornbread, chicken and other authentic soul food and see the new Taste of Soul open soon.

'Taste of Soul by dips' is under construction in the former Chicken Coop on Nazareth at Gull Road in Kalamazoo. Shakiyla Bradford and her husband have been working hard to make their dream come true and promise a grand opening to be announced soon and having "some of whatever you can think of on the menu, literally 100%."

So what, exactly, is "soul food" and where else can you get? African American Registry defines soul food as, "a term used for an ethnic cuisine, food traditionally prepared and eaten by African Americans of the Southern United States." Staples include red beans and rice, black-eyed peas, biscuits, butter beans and collard greens. Grits, ribs, catfish, okra, cracklins and chitlins might also be found on the menu.

View this post on Instagram

For all you sports⚽️⚾️ fans cookies 5⭐️ grill has the platters in.Stop by & come see us 712 Douglas ave, Kalamazoo,MI 49007 #photooftheday#food#cookies#goodfood#healthyfood#fastfood#realfood#kalamazoo#kazoo#cookies5stargrill#sports#followme#top#foodlover#foodstagram#pictureoftheday#superbowl#playoffs#soccer#baseball#hockey#smileyfaces#travel#resturant#nightlife#collegelife#wmu#kvcc#kcollege

A post shared by cookies (@cookies5stargrill) on Nov 28, 2016 at 4:50pm PST

Northside favorite Cookie's Five Star Grill is (ironically) rated 4.5 stars on Yelp! and is opening a second location soon.  

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

If i were a shrimp, this is how I’d wanna end up A post shared by Grub N Stuff (@grubnstuffkzoo) on Jan 11, 2020 at 6:48pm PST

Grub N Stuff also gets high marks for their smoked meats, fried chicken, fish and shrimp.

View this post on Instagram

Stopped in for a little #soulfood at #rafaynee in #battlecreek. Great black-eyed peas and peach cobbler. The owners are very nice. #believeinbattlecreek

A post shared by ross.comstock (@ross.comstock) on May 6, 2017 at 2:05pm PDT

Rafaynee is the go-to in Battle Creek for soul food.

If you've never tried soul food, there's a whole world of flavors to enjoy and more coming soon. Let us know in the comments if we missed your favorite.