Three Bay Area soul food restaurants you need to try

"While the term soul food was coined in the 1960s, the style of cooking is way older, passed down through generations. Originating from slave plantations, soul food recipes were developed when enslaved people applied African flavors to the dishes they served their enslavers and the scrap meat and animal feed (cornmeal) they were given to eat. After emancipation, Black people further perfected their recipes for dishes like fried chicken, oxtail soup, Hoppin' John, collard greens, candied yams, mac-n'-cheese, cornbread and sweet potato pie,"

"Cherie Barfield always had a love for cooking. As a kid, it's how her family came together and showed love, she recalls. But it wasn't until her son wrote her a business plan while still a student in high school, no less that she decided to quit her corporate job and open a fast-casual restaurant in 2023 in her hometown, Dublin."

Soul food originated on slave plantations when enslaved people applied African flavors to the limited food available, including scrap meat and animal feed like cornmeal. After emancipation, Black cooks perfected dishes such as fried chicken, oxtail soup, Hoppin' John, collard greens, candied yams, mac-n'-cheese, cornbread and sweet potato pie and brought them to church gatherings. Twentieth-century Black migration spread these culinary traditions across the United States, seeding soul food restaurants nationwide. The Bay Area now hosts dozens of soul food restaurants offering rich, savory comfort foods at reasonable prices. Cherie Barfield opened Cherie's Southern Kitchen in Dublin in 2023 after leaving a corporate job, inspired by family recipes and a business plan her son wrote.

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