Sweet Southern comfort

A Houston tradition since 1946, Barbecue Inn has crispy fried chicken that takes about 25 minutes to make and is worth the wait.

I don’t remember the chef’s name or, sadly, even his face. But I do remember his words: Food is memory. Here, in Houston, no meal choices delve as deeply into the past as the Southern staples served at family get-togethers, Sunday church suppers and covered-dish potlucks.

It’s called “comfort food” for a reason, and people seem to seek it out every time there is a personal or national crisis. It’s no different than sliding into a pair of old, familiar jeans. There’s Cleburne Cafeteria (3606 Bissonnet) – where every day is Thanksgiving with turkey and dressing. Owner George Mickelis has witnessed many spikes in demand for comfort foods, with the most definitive being after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. More recently, several chef-driven, Southern comfort-food restaurants and bars have opened, including Lucille’s (5512 LaBranch) and Punk’s Simple Southern Food (5212 Morningside). A commonality weaves through these establishments – a desire not only to share the food that the chefs grew up eating, but also their memories of simpler, golden times.

Then, there are the restaurants that have created memories. We’re talking about Brennan’s of Houston (3300 Smith). At the Breakfast Klub (3711 Travis), Houstonians start the day with perfectly crisp fried catfish and grits. The oxtails at This Is It (2712 Blodgett) and Alfreda’s Cafeteria (5101 Almeda Road) have imprinted their juicy tenderness into my mental scrapbook, along with the dirty rice with ground chicken-liver bits at Frenchy’s Chicken (3919 Scott St.). The fried chicken and chicken-fried chicken breast at Barbecue Inn (116 W. Crosstimbers Road) still taste as sublime as the first time I bit into their greaseless, crunchy goodness in 1985. They still take 25 minutes to make. Eating here is like entering a feel-good time warp. And owner David Skrehot, whose grandparents started the restaurant in 1946, has no intention of changing a family tradition.