Roadside Café (formerly Clem's Place)

Location

Don’t expect anything fancy here. In fact, some of its biggest fans call this restaurant is a “hole in the wall,” and they complain that it is hard to find because it is concealed by the carwash next door. What keeps those fans coming back? One of them says that it’s because they serve his most favorite Carolina Barbecue. But it is not just barbecue, it is the “soul food,” including “chitlins’” on Thursdays and Fridays that often draw the biggest crowds here.

Clementine Austin owned and ran Clem’s Place for many years. Recently, she handed ownership over it to her daughter Ursula Johnson, who changed the name to Roadside Café. While Ursula serves in the U.S. Army, Clem continues to run the restaurant. “Without pay,” she says, “13 hours everyday.” When I ask her what she gets out of this new arrangement she says, “Because all the bills go to my daughter. No more do I have to deal with them.”

Hrs: Mon.-Sat., 6 a.m.- 7 p.m.