Esther's Soul Food + Kitchen

We stopped in to eat around 12pm on a Sunday, and there was already a line to the door when we walked in. It took a while to order our food, but once we got to the register, it was easy and beneficial to order at the counter (vs the self serve kiosk that seemed to be down). We waited almost 20min for our ticket to be called/to pick up our food, but we didn’t mind the wait.My daughter got the chicken leg kids meal with fries, an extra leg, and a soft drink. She said her food was really good, and it must’ve been, because she did not share any!I ordered the pork chop dinner with fried okra, candied yams, and yellow rice & gravy. Oh yeah, I also had cornbread. Overall, the food was pretty good. The pork chop had a good taste to it despite the light color (I expected it to be fried harder/darker), the okra were good, and the yams were my favorite. The cornbread wasn’t brown enough for me, but it was good enough for me to want another piece.We’d definitely go back!

Out with the fam running errands and the time slipped away from us. A party of five settling on one place is an errand in and of it self. After much debate soul-food was the final consensus.The place we picked was closed… so the NY’er visiting had to find a back-up for the relatives that live here… Go Figure.Esther’s came up and as I browsed the reviews I was left a bit skeptical. We drove over and I ran in to grab a menu. The gentlemen at the front counter didn’t seem pleased that I asked for a menu and directed me to the display above or the QR code by the door. I scanned an went back to the car for final decisions.One thing that seems to be accurate in all reviews is the wait time. You definitely have to pack your patience. This was not that big of a deal because the reviews gave me fair warning. Plus we had a large order of 5 different dinner plates.Our menu choices for the night was:1. Fried Whiting with Mac & Cheese, Yams, and Potato Salad.2. Fried Chicken with Mac & Cheese, Cabbage, and dressing with gravy.3. Fried Pork Chop with Mac & Cheese, Cabbage, and dressing with gravy.4. Fried Whiting with Mac & Cheese, Cabbage, and rice with gravy5. Kids chicken tender with Mac & Cheese.Unanimously the cornbread that accompanied the plates was enjoyed by all. I had the fried whiting with yams, mac & cheese and potato salad. The fish was cooked perfectly with a nice fried texture on the outside and flaky on the inside. It was seasoned well also. I really enjoyed the yams but the potato salad was a hard pass for me. It was simultaneously sweet and bland. Definitely not for me. I thought the Mac & cheese was salty but the other 4 family members said it was peppery.Now for the other orders…Fried chicken was on point, it was crispy yet juicy and well seasoned. The dressing was ok. The cabbage was to mushy very much over cooked and both the fried pork chop and rice with gravy was underwhelming.Overall my family’s thoughts were mixed just liked the reviews I read that made me skeptical. For my family that resides in Columbia they are not too pressed on returning. For me I would give them another try, knowing what not to pick would be key though.Just A Note:They do an all you can eat buffet on Mondays, I am unclear if any other day is included.

Read previous reviews so I expected a longer wait... it was about 12-15 minutes. Cons: the bathrooms were not clean. They left the cornbread orders out of our bag. We were dining in so were able to pick them up at the counter. The cornbread was nasty to me... tasted like cake mix with cornmeal added (not jiffy but cake). The mac and cheese wasn't the best.. The noodles were cooked too long and it needed more milk or cream. Pros: The ambiance is very nice. I loved the aesthetic. The collard greens, candied yams, and fried okra were excellent. The smothered pork chops and meatloaf were really good. We ended up taking most of the food home to devour.

The customer service is amazing! Those young men were very mannerable and pleasant. I would come back for them alone! One seemed to be in training but the young lady made sure to assist him when needed. I'm not going to lie, I was a little disappointed in the food. I visited this place because of the FB Columbia Eats group and overall, it was just okay. I got the wing dinner that came with 2 sides. Wings were fried perfectly! I got Mac and cheese, okra, and fries as sides with cornbread. I didn't really care for the seasoning on the Mac, the okra were good but I didn't have enough (LOL), my fries were old and I had to get new ones. The cornbread tasted a day old but I know it would delicious when fresh. My friend had the pork chop dinner. He didn't care for the cornbread dressing. He also had yellow rice and gravy, and collards. He didn't eat all his food so I'm not sure if he enjoyed it. I would come back and try again though!

Update: July 2022 back in Columbia and this is my MUST have. Pic with 2 dinners together- pork chops and wings (whole). Everything, I mean everything, was amazing again! Yams, greens, Mac n cheese……. Baby——Whew! Quick pick up, less than 4 minutes!! My hubby and I truly enjoy our food every time!Cooked to order but well worth the wait. Fried rib tips! Whole fried wings with good seasoning! Everything has flavor. Mac n Cheese, greens, rice. I put my cornbread in my greens cause I’m from Atlanta!! But the cornbread was like cake! Super happy we walked into this place!!! Really really good soul food! Like grandma Mattie!

Oh my gosh ! Can you say impressed !The cleanest place I’ve been in by far in Columbia SC . I am from this city and I have worked in over 15 restaurants in my life and I have never had great customer service, cleanliness, and magnificent food with awesome flavors as a combo ! This place is a must go ! Located in Sandhills towne center with beautiful art displayed as well ! Thanks for the awesome experience !

Wait time…..45 minutes and longer. I ordered baked chicken, greens, mac’n cheese and sweet potatoes. The sides were good but my chicken was not baked it was fresh out tha air fryer. For this I will not be back. Y’all enjoy! Oh I ate the skin just to understand what I ordered was really not what I ordered.

My family of 5 eats here as often as we can. We have traveled from another city on a few occasions just to eat lunch or dinner here. Most of our experience has been with ordering online and that has always been seamless. The food is amazing! The portions are generous. I’ve never been able to eat it all in one sitting. Even my mother, who is very picky about restaurants, loves Esther’s Soul Food Kitchen. In fact we’re ordering from there today, for Mother’s Day. I know it’s going to be great!

We’ve eaten at Esther’s several times and the food is consistently delicious. And if there’s a problem with your order they handle it professionally. If you enjoy eating Soul Food you should definitely check them out.

If I were rating the food it would have been 5 stars. The food was really good and the ambience of the restaurant was very inviting. My mark down is for the amount of time I spent waiting for my order. I waited over 45 minutes to receive my order, but the staff was very apologetic and they even gave me an extra dessert for my wait. I will be back, because the food definitely speaks for itself. I will just call ahead next time.

The fried turkey wings are the BOMB!. THE NEW LOCATION is very nice, & provides plenty of seating in a very nice atmosphere...

Great experience. Great food. Enjoyed the grilled shrimp, collards and yams.

Nice atmosphere. LONG wait. Luke-warm food. Sat in restaurant to eat, but, decided to bring our food home to heat it. We wanted a hot meal. Ultimately, we wasted money, since reheating certainly didn’t help matters.Poor customer service. The person who took our order tried to be a comedian. Don't know at what point our order became funny; however, what I heard was "that figures." Done.

I have heard and read reviews about the restaurant, but because I love supporting new/black owned businesses I decided to check it out for myself. I love the atmosphere, I love the decor and what was done to the restaurant. The food was also really good and portion size were great. I did not have any issues with customer service nor any wait time, maybe I came on a good night. But I will say, I agree that customer service keeps you in business. I want to see this restaurant flourish and hope to see the owners/managers take the constructive criticism in stride and make any necessary changes. Columbia is notorious for letting a good thing die and I don't want to see the cycle continue here. Wishing you all much success and praying the people offer grace and mercy to you as you continue building your business. Much love!Just to add: I am here regularly now (and still haven't had an issue). Every dish that I've tried is bomb! The fish, the greens, yams, turkey wings, rice, cabbage, Mac and cheese, down to the cornbread and yeast rolls. BOMB, you hear me?!

I placed my order for the first time and my food was ready in 15 minutes. My food was so good and I’ll definitely will be back.