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Local restaurants offer fresh, home-style meals

Written by Alanna Quillen, The Shorthorn senior staff

Wednesday, 18 November 2009 06:17 PM

Jay Jay’s Café offers Chicken Fried Steak, front, a dinner salad, back left, Pecan Chicken and several other items. (The Shorthorn: Stephanie Goddard)

Pioneer Restaurant
306 109th St.
817-640-8778
Hours: 6 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday – Saturday, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday

Family owned and operated for almost 30 years, this quaint restaurant near the Six Flags Mall offers cooking from scratch and a hometown vibe. Every day, there’s a special of home-cooked meals like meatloaf, turkey and dressing, and roasted chicken. The restaurant doesn’t offer coupons or discounts, but all menu items are under $10.

Choose from a variety of plates like catfish, hamburgers, hot sandwiches, Tex-Mex and breakfast, which are served all day. The restaurant features plenty of seating and an eccentric, small-town diner feel.

The windows are decorated with festive, Thanksgiving-motif paintings. The staff is personable and the owner sits among customers to chat.

Jay Jay’s Café is located in the shopping district at the northwest intersection of Randol Mill and Fielder. (The Shorthorn: Stephanie Goddard)

Mama’s Pizza
1200 N Fielder Road
817-795-8700
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday – Thursday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday, Saturday; noon-10 p.m. Sunday

This particular branch has been open for five years, but the chain has been in business for 40 years, starting in Fort Worth.

The pizzas are hand-tossed with fresh-made dough. All ingredients, like produce and toppings, are fresh and are delivered two times a week.

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday, pizza and salad buffet with a drink costs $6.50 for students with Mav Express cards. Visit the Web site to print out coupons.

If you don’t want pizza, try Mama’s Sub with ham, pepperoni, lettuce, tomato, mozzarella and American cheese for $5. Whole-pan pizzas cost around $6 for a small and up to $20 for a large with several toppings.

Jay Jay’s Café makes 25 kinds of cream pies, oven filled, oven baked fruit pies, and special pies from scratch. (The Shorthorn: Stephanie Goddard)

Jay Jay Café
518 Fielder North Plaza
817-861-2050
Hours: 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday – Saturday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday

Perfect for the Thanksgiving season, this café creates fresh pies from scratch.

For $9 to $11, whole pies include cherry cream cheese, German chocolate, pumpkin crunch and coconut custard. The pies feature no store-bought ingredients and the cream is whipped by the cooks.

If you don’t have the energy to toil over a Thanksgiving feast, the restaurant sells Thanksgiving packages for $70. Those include a whole turkey or 3.5 pound ham with sides, dinner rolls and corn bread. Package orders must be prepaid and picked up by 5 p.m. on Nov. 25.

The café maintains a home-like atmosphere with pottery, brick accents and soft light. Once you enter, just seat yourself and $10 should be enough to cover any meal on the 100-plus item menu.

Home-style favorites include chicken fried steak, pork chops, southern meatloaf and catfish. Sandwiches and hamburgers cost from $5 to $6. Breakfast is served all day and specials change daily. On Sundays from 8 to 10:30 a.m., breakfast buffet costs $6.99 and brunch buffet until noon costs $7.99.

John Carter’s Place Home Style Cooking
5309 E. Lancaster Ave., Ft. Worth
817-446-3727
Hours: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday – Thursday, 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday, Saturday; 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday

John Carter is not just a part of the restaurant’s name. He has owned restaurants in Louisiana and Texas for most of his life, serving home style and southern food, with the Fort Worth branch celebrating its 18th year.

The lunch and dinner specials change daily and include one meat item, three vegetable options and corn bread muffins or bread rolls for $6.79. You can choose from meats like a baked turkey wing, Salisbury steak or barbecue smoked sausage.

Diners can choose vegetables like candied yams and mashed potatoes. Other menu items like the chicken fried steak sandwich or omelettes cost from $4 to $8. For the holidays, the restaurant sells full dinners that serve 12 to 15 people.

In a dinner package, one gets a choice of meat along with corn bread dressing, rolls and other items for $69.95. Desserts include pies, cobblers and cakes costing between $9 and $25.

The drive takes a straight shot down Division Street to the edge of Arlington and the spacious dining area and friendly staff are worth it.

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Last Updated ( Thursday, 28 January 2010 01:43 PM )

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