A Hattiesburg Buffet With Barbecue, Catfish and Southern Sides

A plate here can take a few different directions. Start with smoked brisket and ribs, add fried catfish or shrimp, then make room for macaroni and cheese, collard greens, candied yams and a scoop of sweet potato casserole. This Hattiesburg restaurant puts a wide spread of Southern comfort food on the buffet for both lunch and dinner.

The food arrives hot and plentiful, and the value is a frequent point of appreciation. It is an easygoing place to settle in with family, meet a larger group, or take a break from the road without having to negotiate one narrow menu.

The barbecue is a major reason to come hungry. Smoked brisket is a standout, and the ribs have the tender, pull-apart quality that makes a buffet return trip tempting.

Brisket, fish and sausage make a particularly hearty combination if you are building a plate around smoky, savory flavors. There are also combinations featuring fish, sausage and barbecue, so the meal need not stay in a single lane.

Fried catfish is one of the regular crowd-pleasers, available as part of the buffet experience and in a catfish platter. The crisp fried seafood gives the meal a nice counterpoint to the softer casseroles and saucier side dishes.

Fried shrimp adds another seafood choice, while shrimp pasta and shrimp-and-spaghetti selections bring a different, more home-style pasta direction to the table. A diner can go all-in on fried seafood, or take a little shrimp pasta beside barbecue and greens.

Gumbo deserves its own stop. A bowl alongside a garden salad makes a lighter opening before moving on to the fuller buffet plate, though gumbo can just as easily become the centerpiece for someone who prefers a spoon to a stack of fried items.

Sweet potato casserole is a favorite for good reason. It has the sweet, comforting role that many Southern diners want from a holiday-style side, and it fits just as naturally beside fried chicken as it does beside brisket.

Candied yams continue the sweeter side of the spread. Macaroni and cheese, collard greens, seasoned vegetables and potato logs handle the rest of the plate-building work, giving diners plenty of ways to balance smoky meat, fried seafood and vegetables.

That range is useful when a table has mixed tastes. One person can build a classic meat-and-three-style plate, another can focus on seafood and vegetables, and someone else can make a quieter meal from salad, gumbo and a few familiar sides.

Southern-style crispy fried chicken is another solid reason to make room on the plate. Chicken fingers and chicken nuggets offer familiar choices for younger diners or anybody who simply prefers a straightforward fried-chicken meal.

The chicken fingers have developed a following of their own. They are the sort of simple buffet item that can disappear from a first plate faster than planned, especially with all the more elaborate choices nearby.

Dessert does not require much ceremony here. Soft-serve ice cream is available for a cool finish after barbecue, catfish and all those warm sides.

It is a modest but welcome closing note, especially after a plate built around sweet potato casserole or candied yams. Sometimes a small swirl of ice cream is all the dessert strategy a buffet needs.

Inside, the dining room is clean, well maintained and more practical than showy. Conversation is generally easy in the calm-to-moderately lively room, and the setting suits a casual family meal without asking anyone to dress up the occasion.

Servers keep tea and soda refills coming as diners work their way through the buffet. That attentive table service is a useful touch when people are making repeated trips for catfish, brisket, gumbo or one more helping of a favorite side.

The restaurant has accommodated groups of nine or more and works comfortably for a range of party sizes. It is also a convenient stop for travelers moving through the Mississippi-Louisiana corridor, with a free parking lot that has plenty of spaces.