Georgia Magazine - August 2017 - 33

COURTESY BURKE'S GRILL

nen. "We get a lot of guests from out
of town."
Those diners often opt for two of
Bulloch's most famous dishes: fried
chicken and fried green tomatoes.
"That's what we're known for,"
Brannen says. "We also rotate in a
beef or fish entrée, like fish cakes or
meatloaf. They're served with green
beans (a staple), baby lima beans,
whole purple peas, squash casserole
and sweet potato soufflé."
Save room for Bulloch House's
homemade red velvet cake and
poundcake as well as lemon meringue and chocolate-chip pecan
pies. "We're also known for our caramel and six-layer chocolate cakes,"
Brannen adds.
Hungry folks who find themselves in the vicinity of Cornelia can
fill up at Fenders Diner, a 1950s-style
restaurant tucked into a former grocery store and meat market next to
the train tracks. The eatery dates
back to 1996, when the aptly named
Cook family from Habersham County
kicked off its car-themed business
that serves up classic crowd-pleasers.
About 15 vegetables are on the
daily menu, but the squash casserole,
sweet potato soufflé, hand-breaded
green tomatoes and mac 'n' cheese
get the most attention.
"Our most popular meat-andthree day is Thursday, when we do
turkey and dressing," says Brandon
Cook, whose dad, Bradley, oversees
the kitchen. "That's the dish that got
us where we are today, so we've built
off that and always stayed busy."
In keeping with diner tradition,

the menu is broad, also offering a
half-pound Big Bopper burger and
quesadillas. But the car shows are a
thing of the past.
"We had them here on the weekend, but we don't do that anymore,"
says Brandon Cook. "We're just so
busy that we don't have room for that
anymore."
There's a nostalgic, car-related favorite on the menu of Burke's Grill
in Douglasville: The Captain Herb
special-a platter of four veggies-is
named for the late and beloved Atlanta traffic reporter, Herb Emory, who
was a regular at Dwight and Peggy
Burke's table.
"He used to come in here all the
time and always got the vegetable
plate," Peggy recalls. "But we only
had a three-veggie, so he always
added one-either grits or mac 'n'
cheese. So in honor of him we now
have a four-veggie plate."
The grits are a favorite of most
Burke's diners, no doubt for their particular preparation, Peggy explains.

Above left: Burke's Grill in Douglasville
offers classics-like chicken salad on a
croissant with a side of fresh fruit-in addition to some signature flavors, including
the jalapeño cornmeal waffle with Sriracha
syrup. Above: Peggy Burke says Dwight
Burke's mac 'n' cheese "is the reason I married him. It's extra-cheesy."

"Dwight cooks them in chicken stock
and heavy whipping cream. But his
mac 'n' cheese is the reason I married
him. It's extra-cheesy."
The couple had been catering
for about 25 years before opening
their own place in 2012 to showcase
Dwight's favorite recipes.
"He's been in the food business
since he was 12 and busing tables at
Shoney's in Augusta," Peggy says. "He
fell in love with cooking and worked
for Morrison's Cafeteria and Red Lobster, but he said their corporate recipes stifled his creativity. So now he
does whatever he feels like cooking."
That might be fried chicken, beef
stew, meatloaf, fried catfish, chicken

Capt. Herb Emory
August 2017

COURTESY BURKE'S GRILL

A legacy of giving
When Atlanta traffic reporter Capt. Herb Emory dined at Burke's Grill
in Douglasville, he did two things, recalls owner Peggy Burke.
"He always ordered the three-veggie plate with an extra veggie, and
he also paid for any first responders who were in the house."
Firefighters, police officers and EMTs often were treated to Emory's
generosity. Since his death in 2014, the Burke family of diners has established a "pay-it-forward fund" to which regulars contribute what they can.
"That way, if there's a first responder here, we still pay for them,"
Burke says.
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