Grandmothers Kitchen | Smoky Mountain Home Cooking

Real Country Cooking

Grandmothers Kitchen is a place to appreciate real country character. It is a rustic, wood-paneled cafe with decor that is a panoply of religious icons, hunting trophies, farm implements, and vintage kitchenware. It really does serve Smoky Mountain home cooking prepared, as promised, with true grandmotherly expertise. Plenty of restaurants in and around Sevierville promise good ol’ fashioned country vittles. Here is one that delivers on that promise. Its location away from the hubbub of town gives it extra-added allure. (Here is a guide to Roadfood-recommended eateries in the area.)

Biscuits are a Must

With breakfast or lunch, you definitely want a cat head biscuit or two. As its name suggests, it is a big, knobby thing with character. Tender with a buttermilk twist, you want this biscuit to mop gravy, crumble onto turnip greens, or simply eat out of hand.

Best Dish

When smoked pork chops are the day’s special, have one. While not dramatically juicy, smoke-cooking infuses it with radiant flavor. What’s better that that magic flavor combo of smoke and pork? Side it with buttery squash casserole enriched with plenty of Ritz crackers. And for peppery punch, have greens, too. It adds up to an exemplary Mid-South meal.

What Else to Eat

Regular menu items include country ham, catfish, smoked chicken, fried chicken, and country-fried steak covered with gravy. Choose side dishes from a selection so copious that an all-vegetable meal makes good sense, too.

Award-Winning Cake

For dessert, cake is #1. Grandma Mary Shinlever’s coconut pineapple cake earned its fame for good reason. It is fluffy-light, dotted with little nuggets of pineapple and layered with ethereal white icing.

Hearty Breakfast

Grandmothers Kitchen opens for breakfast at 7am. Of course you can choose bacon and eggs or an omelet. But if you are seeking emblematic Smoky Mountain home cooking, go with country ham, pork tenderloin, or country fried steak and gravy.

The Missing Apostrophe

Grammar nerds: there is no apostrophe in the formal name of this restaurant. But as far as I know, Mrs. Shinlever is the only grandmother involved.