This Georgia Roadside Café Keeps Locals Loyal For Fried Chicken

Some roads flash neon promises, but the one into Warm Springs delivers flavor you’ll actually remember. On Broad Street, tucked between quiet storefronts, a café serves fried chicken that people talk about in low tones, the kind of praise saved for family recipes.

Buffets sag with sides, cornbread breaks warm in your hands, and strangers lean close like neighbors. The town feels small, but the welcome feels enormous.

I’ll take you inside, through the plates, the stories, even the trick of snagging the best seat, so you’ll arrive already hungry, ready to see why Warm Springs feeds more than appetite.

Small Town, Big Staple

You’ll find the café at 70 Broad St., Warm Springs, with posted hours and a parking lot that’s just big enough to suggest people stay. It sits downtown, modest but anchored in familiarity.

Parking’s usually easy; you walk up, you see a sign, you don’t fight city traffic. It feels like stepping into someone’s long-lived Sunday dinner.

When I pulled in, I felt instantly at ease. The building doesn’t shout; it waves “come on in,” and over a plate of chicken you’ll understand why people do.

Fried Chicken First

The buffet line doesn’t leave you guessing, the fried chicken sits up front, golden and fragrant. The Bulloch House makes it their signature, and the aroma alone confirms why.

This isn’t a novelty dish; it’s tradition. Generations have come for this exact taste, the crispy coating hugging tender meat. The restaurant’s history is inseparable from this recipe.

If you go, don’t wait, grab your pieces early. The best cuts move quickly, and once you taste them, you’ll know why.

Buffet Rhythm

Steam rises from pans in an easy rhythm, mains and vegetables cycling through as the day unfolds. There’s fried chicken, of course, but also meatloaf, greens, and cornbread.

That flow keeps the buffet interesting; you never feel locked into the same old spread. It mirrors Southern kitchens where variety was part of the pleasure.

I found myself circling back just to check what appeared next. It turned into a little game of timing, and I honestly enjoyed that more than I expected.

Real Hometown Love

Scroll through reviews and one thing jumps out: locals and travelers both call out the chicken by name. Tripadvisor is filled with those exact words, “best fried chicken.”

That kind of repetition tells you it isn’t hype; it’s memory. The café feeds families, visitors, and people passing through, but the loyalty is anchored in community.

When I saw those posts before visiting, I thought they might exaggerate. After tasting it myself, I got it. The praise felt more like understatement.

Sides That Matter

The buffet pays attention to its supporting cast. Dishes like fried green tomatoes, creamed corn, and baby limas rotate often, keeping things lively. Each side has a texture and personality that balances the mains.

That variety reflects the way Southern tables have always worked, meals built as much on vegetables as on meat. Bulloch House keeps that balance intact.

My advice: don’t skip the tomatoes. I went back for seconds, realizing they gave the chicken a bright, acidic partner I didn’t know I needed.

Friday And Saturday Supper

Weekends bring a shift. The café opens again for evening service on Friday and Saturday, a treat if you’re looking for supper rather than lunch.

Locals know to plan for it, and visitors who happen to stumble in find the place buzzing. Supper hours stretch the atmosphere into something more festive.

I went on a Friday once, and the chatter felt thicker, more relaxed. It reminded me that fried chicken tastes even better when the sun’s gone down.

Cash Or Card, Come Hungry

Walk inside and the setup is refreshingly simple. A counter greets you, and the dining room feels ready for families, groups, and road-trippers alike. There’s no pretense, just tables that want filling.

Payment’s flexible: cash or card both work. That ease reflects the straightforward hospitality running through the place.

I came in starving, and that was the right move. The spread doesn’t just satisfy, it encourages you to go all in, without guilt, until you lean back content.

History In The Recipe

The Bulloch House isn’t just another buffet. It’s a fixture that helped Warm Springs recover after a devastating fire in 2015.

Their recipes, especially the fried chicken, became a kind of culinary glue holding the community together during rebuilding. That history sits in every serving.

If you’re visiting for the first time, remember: you’re eating more than a meal. You’re tasting the determination of a town that refused to lose its landmark restaurant.

Back From The Ashes

After the fire, the café relocated to a historic Broad Street space and rebuilt its rhythm without losing the soul of the menu.

The fried chicken and Southern staples remained intact, anchoring the “new” space to its past. Walls changed, but the flavor stayed rooted.

I admired that balance. Rebirth can mean reinvention, but here it meant resilience. Sitting in the rebuilt dining room, I felt the continuity more than the change.

Daily Proof

Check their Facebook page and you’ll see the buffet menu posted nearly every day. Fried chicken appears again and again, a constant anchor on a changing spread.

That consistency builds trust. Visitors know the signature dish won’t disappear, while locals watch for what sides or extras will rotate in.

I actually checked the posts before going, and it felt reassuring. Scrolling down and seeing “fried chicken” line after line was like a daily promise waiting to be fulfilled.

Dessert Is Not A Maybe

The buffet finishes with sweets that feel hand-picked from Southern kitchens: cakes, pies, and cobblers.

They’re not just add-ons. Desserts here are treated as part of the full meal, a sweet punctuation mark rather than an afterthought.

If you want the best experience, save room early. I regretted filling up too fast on vegetables, the chocolate cake at the end looked like the kind of finale that deserved attention.

Easy Day-Trip Pairing

Warm Springs offers more than food. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Little White House sits nearby, along with shops and historic trails.

The café fits naturally into that rhythm, lunch here, history there, maybe a stroll afterward. It turns a meal into a rounded day.

I loved that combination. Eating fried chicken, then walking streets F.D.R. once knew, made the day feel connected in a way only small towns manage.

Simple Advice

The best strategy is timing. Arrive right when the doors open and you’ll find the buffet pans hottest, the chicken freshest, and the line still short.

That early window means choosing your favorite pieces before the rush and settling in with a calmer vibe. Locals know this trick, and it makes the meal more enjoyable.

I followed that advice myself, and it paid off. Sitting down early, first plate piled high, I felt like I’d been let in on a delicious secret.