The Best of Better Foods: Neal's Cafe in Springdale.

The only restaurant in Arkansas that serves the magnificent "pulley," Neal's Cafe has offered good fried chicken, home cooking and pie since 1944. Let's take a look inside.

Pieday: Lemon Meringue at Neal's Cafe.

Tart and thick, Neal's Cafe's lemon meringue
pie appears like a snow-covered Peep
atop a nuclear explosion. (Kat Robinson)

Have you ever driven somewhere just for pie? Well, yes, I do that — but usually I get something else to eat along the way.

This time around, no go… I was already stuffed. I was working my way through the Fayetteville-Springdale area and had already consumed portions of four other slices of pie and half a burger at other establishments visited. I shouldn’t have been hungry. The game plan, as always: take two bites, put it in a box.

Except at Neal’s Café in Springdale, I just couldn’t. That pie dun got ate.

Neal's Cafe:  Classic sign, pink exterior,
hard to miss. (Grav Weldon)

Nope, didn’t make this trip on my own. My photographer and I had six destinations and seven pies to hit that day, playing catch-up for vacation time. My Texas journey and his Alaskan sojourn had taken precious time from our important and time-cinched search for the best pie in the state of Arkansas. We had to cover ground quick.

We’d already tried the coconut and chocolate meringue pies at Mama Z’s in Tontitown and the strawberry chiffon and Awesome Possum pies (and lunch) at the Front Porch Diner in Springdale and still had to hit Feltner Brothers (not for pie but a check-in to the new College Street location), Sassy’s Red House and Greenhouse Grill in Fayetteville. So yeah, we were watching our consumption.

Masculine, green tiled and PINK.  Neal's Cafe is quite
certain of its masculinity.

Still, Neal’s Café. Pink. Old fashioned in a very Lodge-meets-Automat sort of way. Did I mention it was pink? Wood topped tables. Big deer and elk heads on the wall. And a pie case on a counter in the center back of the room…

So, the menu actually gives a little history, which didn’t help my growling stomach. As I mentioned, I’d already had lunch and bites of four pies. But hearing that this place was known for its pan fried chicken… I wanted to try it and I couldn’t. I couldn’t risk not being able to sample all those pies and I didn’t want to explode along the way. Made me sorta sad.

So, turns out the place has been open since 1944 and has been in the Neal family all that time. Their motto is “Serving the Best of Better Foods.” It’s a timewarp. A lovely, lovely timewarp.

There's no color correction here.  That really is it.

Those pies, though. At first, from across the room at least, the pies looked as if someone had piled meringue atop those Peeps chicks. Big tall peaks. Closer in they were more marvelous, big tall peaks of perfectly toasted meringue.

We asked which was the favorite flavor and got a list. We passed on the Tropical pie, which is bananas and coconut and pineapple together, and went for the Lemon Meringue. And I tell you, it’s a rare thing to see such a pungent yellow meringue anywhere. It’s piquantly lemon with substance and heft, a thick deep yellow custard that clings beautifully. The custard was topped with an equally texturally thick meringue with the most beautiful toasted top on it. The crust: folded flour, barely flavor but built on those tight thin layers for the perfect cut.

See, this is a pie you wouldn’t want to see mangled. Because of that firm custard, tight meringue and layered crust, you can get a perfect slice every time out of one of those pies. Every one of the pies has six perfect peaks, and each slice contains one of those peaks. Beautiful. Tops as far as diner pies ever go.

I would have liked to had the fried chicken, and I bet I will before I die, I’m certain of that. I settled for the pie and for encouraging my photographer to try one of the ancient and odd Cajun Chef brand sport peppers (which to this point I thought were a Chicago thing) from the on-table set-up, which also included North Little Rock’s own Fischer Honey.

This historic postcard MIGHT be Neal's.  Still investigating.

You’ll find Neal’s Café on Thompson (the main north-south drag through town). It’s open Monday through Saturday 6 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and until 2 p.m. on Sunday. (479) 751-9996 or check out the restaurant website.

Pieday: Strawberry ice box at Susan's Restaurant.

• KAT ROBINSON
• ANY TIME OF DAY: Susan's pies can be ordered at breakfast

I can recall as a child big restaurants where you were seated at a table, where the waitresses would hover over you and touch your shoulder when they talked with you, where there was always a big round case full of cake and pie slices. You don’t find too many of those any more, but you can find one on the main drag in Springdale.

Susan’s Restaurant feels like the kind of family restaurant you want to sit up straight in, eat your green beans and behave your best so you can earn one of those pie slices.

• KAT ROBINSON

Mind you, seems like every time I darken the door at Susan’s I’m there for breakfast. It is one of the better breakfasts I’ve found in northwest Arkansas. Part of that has to do with the Chili and Cheese Omelet ($6.29). I’m a sucker for a good omelet but so often have to pass because the options will be ham, bacon or sausage. The beef chili inside this particular omelet contains beans, onions, peppers and lots of tomatoes. I’m totally cool with that, especially with the cheese blend that’s melty all through. Ah, pardon me, I started to drool there.

• KAT ROBINSON

Portions are relatively large at Susan’s… take, for example, a half order of biscuits and gravy. Big hunks of sausage gravy over two fluffy biscuit halves for $1.99 (a full order is double for $3.19). Enough to satisfy the average diner for breakfast.

• KAT ROBINSON

And then there are the O’Brien Potatoes, which if you have them as a breakfast side will cost you another 79 cents. They’re worth it. Big hunks of potato sautéed up with peppers, onions, black pepper and salt. They’re filling and delicious and should not be missed.

• KAT ROBINSON

But I was going to talk with you about pie. Doesn’t matter that I’ve never been able to get to Susan’s for anything but breakfast (oh, did I mention that Susan’s serves breakfast until 2 p.m.?) — pie is available any time there’s a pie in the cabinet. Which is always. There’s chocolate and coconut meringues, cherry pie and whatever else happens to be in there at the time. Last visit there was a lovely strawberry icebox pie. It was the lightest whipped cream on top dusted with graham cracker on a graham cracker crust — with a light whipped and frosty filling of cream and strawberries, fresh Arkansas strawberries with that tart bite you only get when they’re fresh. Thing is, strawberry icebox pie is only available in the spring at Susan’s; it’s seasonal. When I placed my order and asked the waitress who came and touched my shoulder what’s normally available, she told me that — and that peach pie would be coming in late May. Aw, yeah.

You’ll find Susan’s Restaurant at 1440 West Sunset Avenue (Highway 412) in Springdale. (479) 751-1445 — and it’s open every day.

Damn Good Fried Chicken.

I tend to get a lot of unsolicited suggestions when I go places… mostly from friends, and sometimes just from folks who recognize me and know what I do. One of those recommendations I’ve received from several quarters is a request to check out the AQ Chicken House in Springdale.

Now… the name itself seems to be that of a country restaurant. I would expect to see white walls, checkered tablecloths, and a walk-up window. That’s completely not the impression I got when I drove up on an August afternoon. In fact, I was surprised by how pretty and refined the restaurant appeared. I was charmed by the little truck out front advertizing specials, and by the general Victorian décor.

The first AQ Chicken House opened in Springdale back in 1947 (there’s a second one in Fayetteville)… the brainstorm of Roy Ritter, who sold Southern Fried Chicken to the masses (or really, the dribs and drabs) that found their way up Highway 71’s two lane dustiness. Placemats and the restaurant’s website proudly proclaim that you could once pick up a half chicken dinner for 65 cents, and coffee was a nickle. There are also pointed references to all the things that AQ predates -- like Wal-Mart and Frank Broyles.

AQ, by the way, stands for Arkansas Quality.

There are a whole lot of options on the menu, by the way, this very hefty menu with everything from AQ Pickle-Os (fried pickles) to barbecue to salads to catfish to spaghetti and at least a dozen types of prepared chicken. There’s Hawaiian Chicken -- teriyaki style served over rice with pineapple rings. There’s Parmesan Chicken, smothered in marinara sauce and served over spaghetti. There’s Southwest Chicken -- cut into fajita strips and seasoned with lime before being covered with roasted onions and peppers and cheese. There’s Chicken Alfredo and Chicken ‘n’ Dumplings and Chicken Fried Chicken smothered in gravy. There’s Cajun Chicken Breast and a Charbroiled Buttercrust Chicken Breast and AQ Chicken Livers and Chicken Tenders and Fire Roasted Lite Chicken.

I went for the best option I could figure out -- the Chicken Sampler Platter ($8.79), which comes with three pieces of chicken -- one Original AQ Pan Fried Chicken, one Chicken Over The Coals, and one Sweet N’ Smokey BBQ Chicken. I figured I couldn’t go wrong.

My waitress brought out a basket with a huge, soft cloverleaf roll while I waited. The cloverleaf rolls have been around as long as the chicken has. I enjoyed the soft, somewhat wheaty roll with the offered butter. I even tried some of the items on the table -- the Webster’s Strawberry Preserves and the pure honey. Think I liked the honey the best.

Out came my platter, a fried feast of epic proportions. My hungry butt was ready for it. I first sampled the Chicken Over The Coals breast, and found it to be somewhat salty and full of lemon pepper and smoke flavor. I can see why some of the recommendations I had were for this particular indulgence. The chicken was rich and full of flavor… so much flavor, it needed some of that roll to cut it down a bit. But still good.

I have to say, I wasn’t quite as taken with the barbeque offering. The wing was apparently fried first and then soaked in the tart and tangy sauce, similar to a Buffalo wing sauce. Good, though. I did have trouble keeping it together long enough to get it to my mouth; the combination of slick sauce and fall-off-the-bone meat almost made it a fork-worthy effort. As it was, when my waitress saw me tackling the wing, she brought me hand wipes to clean up with.

The pan fried Original leg, by the way, was probably the best fried chicken I ever put in my mouth. It was juicy without being greasy, with this light crust you get from skillet frying instead of deep frying, and it made me wish I’d gone with my friend Dave’s suggestion and just ordered the Original dinner. Well, you live, you learn, and if I hadn’t ordered the sampler platter I would have kicked myself repeatedly over curiosity.

I’d chosen the sweet potato casserole and the batter French fries as my side items. The sweet potato casserole was surprising -- a puree of what tasted like sweet potatoes, orange juice, and perhaps a little honey. No nuts like at many other places. It was light and very sweet.
The fries? I have to go back for the fries. They were seasoned and battered just like onion rings, except they’re straight and filled with potato. And they were SO good. I could have made a meal out of them alone. Very good. Very, very good.

Well, that really was enough for lunch, but knowing how rarely I’ve made it up to Northwest Arkansas lately, I couldn’t pass up dessert. And how could I miss something so curious as Fried Peaches? They run $3.49 for an order for one or two people or $5.99 for three to four. I was warned that it would probably be 15 minutes to make them up. That was AOK with me… time to let my dinner settle.

But when they came out, I was plenty pleased. And I can offer you this advice: get coffee with the peaches. They need the balance. The cling peach slices are each wrapped in a biscuit type batter, then deep fried for crispiness and then drizzled with what tastes like a peach syrup and cinnamon reduction, rich enough to be liqueur. Completely overwhelms the scoop of vanilla served up with it.

Even the lightness of the biscuit crust fails to deny the richness of this dish. Share with someone for Pete’s sake (preferably me).

They were plenty good. I can certainly say that.

I want to go back again, just to try more on the menu. But I am going to have to bring folks with me. As it was, I had to take more than half of my peach order and half my fries home in a box… this isn’t diet food, you know. I want to try their version of Chicken Fried Steak, the brisket and definitely the Chicken ‘n’ Dumplings. Maybe next time I get up that way. Shouldn’t be too long.

You’ll find the AQ Chicken House in Springdale on Highway 71 (Thompson Avenue) north of Highway 412. They do a lunch special each day until 2pm for $4.99, but the prices are reasonable enough you can swing dinner, too. And for Hog fans, the one in Fayetteville is on North College. Lots more information on the restaurant’s website.