Cotton Southern Bistro

It was my 47th birthday and I was in desperate need of comfort food and I wasn't going to cook it for myself. After a little bit of research I found the Cotton Southern Bistro in Chesapeake. The reviews were mixed but one thing that really impressed me was that with every negative review on Urbanspoon, the owner responded and offered to make the situation right. He seemed to really care about his customer's satisfaction.

Cotton is located in a shopping center on Grassfield Parkway and the ride from Kempsville at dinner time was traffic filled but not unbearable. When we walked in I was surprised at how large the dining area was. There was plenty of seating and I noticed that there was also a separate bar area. We were seated immediately and our drink and appetizer order was taken.

The menu is filled with so many options but I was able to decide on the fried pickles as a starter.

The picture is deceving because there were twice as many pickles in the platter when it was brought to the table. I didn't think to snap the shot until we were almost finished. That's because they were so good. The pickle chips were lightly dusted and fried. Not at all heavy and the creole dipping sauce was a nice compliment but I could have eaten them by themselves.

Cotton serves nightly specials and on Monday we were treated to a pound of steamed shrimp for $7.99.

Seasoned with a generous amount of Old Bay and served with drawn butter and cocktail sauce.

As I said at the beginning of the review, I was in search of comfort food. What is more comforting than fried chicken and macaroni and cheese?

The chicken fried chicken is a breast fried perfectly and topped with country gravy. The chicken was so tender and so juicy and for me, it was the perfect portion size. The mac and cheese was also very good. Not as good as mine ... but still delicious.

The third entree for the evening was the Cotton signature dish, the Kentucky Hot Brown

This is an open-faced grilled turkey sandwich served with fries and smothered with brown gravy. And they aren't kidding when they say "smothered". The turkey was tender and the gravy was tasty but there was just so much of it, that it made the fries soggy and inedible.

The service at Cotton Southern Bistro was friendly. I was a little confused by the uniforms which were black and white striped shirts which made all the waitresses look like referees. I didn't get it but I suppose it's not for me to get. The unform had no bearing on the level of service which I thought was superb and the prices are reasonable as well with the average entree being about $15.

Check Cotton's website for nightly specials and they also advertise live entertainment.

I enjoyed our visit to Cotton Southern Bistro. I love to eat local and the next time I'm craving good comfort food I'll be sure to head back.

648 Grassfield Parkway
Suite 12
Chesapeake, VA 23322
(757) 609-3156
www.cottonsouthernbistro.com