According to local lore, Harold Washington made his decision to run for mayor at Izola's, and a portrait of the late Mayor has a prominent place in the dining room. But this Chatham spot doesn't need municipal approval to make it popular. The restaurant's two rooms—a small diner-style space with stools at the counter and a carpeted main dining room with a couple dozen tables—are often packed with patrons, especially on Sundays, when folks line up for the buffet after church services.

Izola's specializes in "down home cooking," but you won't be corrected if you call it "soul food." Breakfast can include eggs and grits or pancakes and sausage. Lunch features a variety of sandwiches, both hot and cold, and pitchers of sweet tea. Dinner is the real draw, though. It's a slower affair, featuring just-like-grandma-used-to-make staples like baked chicken and dressing and fried catfish with hushpuppies. Whole pies are available for sale as you waddle out.

Centerstage Reviewer: Chuck Sudo