By Kelli J. Cook

To coin a phrase by Campbell’s Soup, Jeneane’s is "Mmm. Mmm. Good!" My two sons and I went for dinner on a Monday night following a soccer-filled, junk-food-packed weekend. Whether it was the "guilty mom" complex from all the recent fast food or my body physically craving vegetables, dinner certainly hit the spot.

Of the five meat choices, I ordered the garlic baked chicken, my oldest got the beef tips on rice, and my youngest got the kid’s meal order of chicken tenders. My children had to search for vegetable sides. (They are green bean, corn on the cob, broccoli, and macaroni fans. I, on the other hand, found it difficult to limit my selection to only two veggies. In fact, after they let me try the collard greens, I simply had to order them, too.

Our meals came almost immediately, which was great for a hungry family on the go. Midway through the meal my oldest piped up with, "No one’s uttered a word since we got our food. Kinda scary, huh?" We were too busy eating to chat! While the adult servings were ample, the child’s portion of chicken tenders was noticeably small. Only two tenders (about 3 ounces) were served, leaving my 9 year-old still hungry (and yes, he did eat all of his veggies). Mom came to the rescue, reluctantly sharing my garlic chicken with him. We asked for dessert suggestions and were pleased to find they were all homemade. I consider myself to be a pecan pie connoisseur and their pie is amongst the best I’ve tasted. Next time though I’ll ask them to leave off the Cool Whip—its flavor overpowered that of the pie. The chocolate pie and banana pudding also received high marks at our table.

But the marks were not as high regarding the level of service we received on our visit. Our waitress was nice, but obviously lacked training. There was no welcome when we arrived. Soft drinks in cans prevented refills (Mom says no refills at $1.00 a piece), but water was never offered. However, there are free refills on tea, but I did have to request one. I determined that this young lady must be a fairly new employee when we were overcharged on our bill. Once I pointed it out to her she went to her manager and he corrected it. It would have been a nice gesture if the manager had stopped by our table and apologized. He seemed incredibly personable judging by his interactions with many of the customers. We just felt a little left out that we never received a "Ya’ll enjoy!" or lollipops like others were given. I think a conscious training effort to spread his genuine enthusiasm and attention to detail throughout the rest of the staff would really add to the dining experience.

Will we go back? You betcha! There are six daily menus that we’ve not yet had a chance to try and Jeneane’s Butter Beans and Fresh Collards are examples of southern food at its finest. The food is great, the service is fast, prices are reasonable, and the boys are widening their "veggie" horizons. A dynamite combination for families on the go!

Cuisine: Southern home cooking

Service: Extremely fast, but table service could use improvement

Price: Entree with 2 sides at $5.50; Childrens plates at $2.50

Owner: Jeneane Barber

Hours: Monday-Friday, 11-2, 5-8; Sunday 11-2

Address: 4436 Forsyth Road v