Two Fat Ladies Over a Simmering Pot

Don’t judge a book by its cover. This place looks less than appealing if you are driving past. Don’t let this keep you from trying the amazing food held inside those walls. Homemade soul food that’ll bring a tear to your eye. It’s that good! They are only open Thursday-​Sunday but try to make it one of your weekend stops!

If you want no nonsense-​give it to me straight up-​honestly the best soul food you’ll ever eat then this is your joint. Everything was made to order so don’t come here thinking you’re gonna be in and out in 5 minutes. Slow your roll, it’s worth it and quit your whining; ain’t nobody in that much of a rush.
What we ordered: Fried Chicken (dark meat), Shrimp with Gravy over rice, Collard Greens, Lima Beans & Okra, Mac & Cheese, and Peach Cobbler
Husband said the fried chicken is the best he’s ever had (not greasy, spiced just right and the texture was light and fluffy). Collard greens were a little sweet and spicy. Shrimp with gravy was magical. The only way you’ll ever want to eat lima beans for the rest of your life.
That being said, you are not coming here for ambience and frills but you’re coming to eat a damn good meal you will never forget.

We went to Two Fat Ladies Over a Simmering Pot, at the corner of Dawson and 16^th St. for Sunday lunch. We arrived around 12:30pm and there was one three-​top table of rescue/​police waiting for their orders. While we were there, several more people came in, as well as arrived to pick up to-​go orders. We both ordered the Two Fat Ladies choice, which was 2 meat portions and two sides. You cannot have two different meats for this selection, it is a double portion of one type of meat. I got barbecued turkey wings, collards, and mac and cheese plus a piece of 7-​Up cake. My boyfriend got fried shrimp, mac and cheese, and butter beans/​okra, plus a piece of pineapple upside down cake. We both ordered waters and paid $ 25 and change, plus put a tip in the jar. All of the food was wonderful. The mac and cheese could have used a bit more flavor, like a sharp cheese or a squirt of yellow mustard for tanginess, so I stirred in a little mustard myself. The collards were some of the best I’ve ever had! They do offer Texas Pete and Pepper Vinegar as condiments. The fried shrimp had a nice, light breading and were not greasy. They were cooked perfectly and were a nice size. I don’t feel that the amount of shrimp was adequate for a two portion meat serving. My boyfriend got a piece of bread with his meal, I did not… not sure why one didn’t come with mine. It was a great bread. It looked like a flat biscuit, but had a sweet, almost cornmeal-​like texture. The butter beans and okra were tasty too, but if you don’t like your okra slimy, you might pass on this one. The barbecued turkey wing was good and moist. They bake them, then dip them in the sauce. The sauce tasted like a bottled KC Masterpiece sauce. They were a bit messy, I’ll probably get the fried chicken next time. Both cakes were incredibly moist and tasted like cakes that your grandma made or that you got at the church covered dish dinner. It took about 10 minutes to get our food and although we were eating in, it was served in to-​go containers; which is fine, since I took half of mine home. Silverware is plasticware and there is a roll of paper towels on each table. I saw that they are also open on Fridays and have some specials specific to only that day. There is no alcohol available, and on Sundays they open at noon. I gave this place 4 instead of 5 stars because there really is no atmosphere and I think my boyfriend got robbed on his double portion of shrimp.

This place is a total Dive. The food is southern authentic to the max. Probably the best vegetable plate I have ever had. The fried chicken was awesome! Don’t let the interior or exterior atmosphere deter you. The only constructive criticism I could give is to turn on more lights and the AC. Like I said, it’s a Dive and it’s all about the food.

If you are looking for low cal cuisine, this is not the place for you. If you are looking for good, fresh, home made from scratch food served in overly generous portions, then this place was created just for you.
The menu has 8 main items plus a daily special but the combinations make the choices plentiful. I went with Shrimp and gravy and fried chicken along with Macaroni and cheese and butter beans with okra.
The chicken was made to order and came out piping hot with a golden brown crunchy skin. The meat was juicy and flavorful. The shrimp and gravy came out over white rice and would have been more than a meal just by itself.
They also included home made corn bread that they had clearly just taken off the griddle to give us something to eat while we waited for our meal.
The steady flow of regulars on an early Sunday afternoon makes it pretty clear the Two Fat Ladies Over a Simmering Pot have quite an extensive fan club.
The place isn’t fancy but it doesn’t need to be. They make you feel welcome and clearly take pride in every plate they serve.

2 important things to know. Cash only and our food took about 30 minutes (made from scratch). This is a zero ambiance establishment. It’s an old Hardee’s or McDonald’s. The shelves housing the plethora of faux flowers could use a good dusting. There was a kid in the dining room watching UNC for kids at a fairly loud volume. That being said, the food was great. I had cube steak which was awesome and my husband gives the fried chicken 4 out of 5 stars. The veggie portions were about triple what you would expect. Everything is served in Styrofoam which I suppose can be good for cleanliness. I’m not a big fan of piping hot food on plastic but you probably won’t make it down to the bottom of the serving anyway. My husband also said it was hard to eat such hot chicken with a plastic fork. All in all we would go back but we would call ahead and take it to go.