This Southfield favorite has been serving soul food to the stars for years!

Aretha Franklin and Kobe Bryant were just some of their fans

Southfield – If you can’t tell by the name, soul food is the game here at Beans and Cornbread. This popular Southfield restaurant got its start back in 1997 thanks to a dream the Managing Partner, Patrick Coleman, had.

“I was managing fine-dining restaurants. I grew up on my mom’s and grandmother’s cooking so I thought it would be neat to take the food that I grew up with and fuse it with fine-dining ambiance, and that’s how Beans and Cornbread got started,” explained Coleman.

Over the years the restaurant met with a lot of success, winning awards for their soul food from Click On Detroit’s Vote 4 The Best contest, Hour Magazine, Detroit Metro Times, and more! They are also a favorite among celebrities, serving the late Aretha Franklin and Kobe Bryant, as well as The Rolling Stones, Steve Harvey, and Laurence Fishburne, just to name a few.

The restaurant is very welcoming with beautiful artwork on the walls, and you might spot more than a few familiar faces up there as well.

“Some of my inspiration came from a Spike Lee movie called, ‘Do the Right Thing,’” explained Coleman.

In the scene Coleman is referencing, Mookie’s friend, Buggin’ Out, is eating pizza at Sal’s pizzeria and notices there are only Italian Americans on the wall. Buggin’ Out asks “Hey Sal, how come you ain’t got no brothers up on the wall here?" and Sal responds, “You want brothers on the wall? Get your own place, you can do what you want to do.”

“And that’s what we did here," said Coleman. "When you come in it’s like taking a walk in a museum. There’s lots of African American memorabilia.”

Now, while they do serve soul food, this isn’t your grandma’s greens. In an effort to make their food healthier, they do not use any lard, fatback, or salt pork in their cooking. Don’t worry though, they still have all your favorites like crispy fried chicken, catfish, and if you can’t decide what to get, you can always try Everything But The Kitchen Sink!

If you want to try Beans and Cornbread, they are located at 29508 Northwestern Hwy in Southfield.