GREENSBORO, N.C. — In celebration of Black History Month, you might want to consider supporting Dame's Chicken and Waffles. It's a popular Black-owned restaurant in downtown Greensboro.
Dame Moore and Randy Wadsworth are the founders and owners of Dame's Chicken and Waffles. They opened the first Dame's restaurant in Durham in 2010. After gaining success in the Research Triangle Region, Moore and Wadsworth decided to open two other locations in Greensboro and Cary.
Some of the mouth-watering southern and comfort foods available at the restaurant include: the world-famous waffles, fried chicken, blackened salmon, smooth grits, eggs, mac and cheese, potato salad, spicy collard greens, and so much more.
"One of the things we have been very mindful of is to really bring home the integrity and the history of the food,” Moore said. “And, how it reflects so much history and how the concept of chicken and waffles came into existence.”
The style of soul food cooking originated in the rural South, using locally raised or gathered foods and other inexpensive ingredients. During American slavery, Black slaves were given only the "leftovers" and "undesirable" cuts of meat. Following their emancipation from slavery in the 1860s, African American cooks expanded on the coarse diet that had been provided to them by slave owners, but still made do with little.
Today, some dishes commonly found in soul food include fried fish or chicken, macaroni and cheese, collard greens, chitlins, black-eyed peas, yams, biscuits, cornbread, and so much more. If you choose to celebrate Black History Month through food, you might want to strongly consider adding an educational component or open dialogue about how soul and southern food became an important part of Black history and culture.
You can also find comfort food options at Dame’s Chicken and Waffles. Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant is currently offering take-out and dine-in service at 50-percent capacity. The restaurant is also following all CDC guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus, such as the use of face masks, social distancing, and cleaning and disinfecting frequently. Dame’s has been standing strong throughout the pandemic due to loyal community support and hard-working employees.
"We are actually surviving the pandemic on the backs of some extremely hard-working employees,” Wadsworth said. “We have been blessed to have the communities supporting us the way they have. It's hard to put into words just the way that the community has come out to support Dame’s Chicken and Waffles to keep us here.”
Dame's Chicken and Waffles is located at 301 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in downtown Greensboro. To view the menu or learn more about the restaurant, visit Dame's Chicken and Waffles website.
