Dixie Kitchen & Bait Shop

Dixie Kitchen & Bait Shop brings Southern cooking to Torrence Avenue in Lansing, where the restaurant has been since 2002. The concept dates to 1994, when Paul Andresen, a career hospitality worker, opened the original Dixie Kitchen at Harper Court in Hyde Park; Chicago Magazine put that restaurant on its top 10 new restaurants list in May 1995, and the Hyde Park location closed in 2009 after losing its lease. An Evanston branch has run since 1998. The menu came from research into Southern food and the input of women who cooked gumbo, fresh catfish and pecan pie for their families. Tables are first come, first served, with no reservations.

What to know

• In Lansing since 2002 at 17940 Torrence Avenue; the sister restaurant in Evanston opened in 1998.
• The original Hyde Park location opened in 1994 and made Chicago Magazine’s top 10 new restaurants in May 1995.
• No reservations; tables seat parties of up to 10 and the whole party must arrive before seating.
• An 18 percent gratuity is added to dine-in orders (20 percent for six or more), and separate checks are not offered.
• No delivery, including third-party apps; carryout is available.