Southern Hospitality at its Most Delicious at Hattaway's on Alder

We discovered Hattaway’s on Alder the first time we visited Walla Walla last year (months before we moved here) and we’ve eaten here many times since. Last night was the first time we had ever dined inside, and I must say – the restaurant is truly stunning. The exposed brick, high ceilings, chic light fixtures and loads of natural sunlight perfectly accent the modern, yet rustic vibe.

We’ve had wonderful service every time we’ve been here, no matter who our server was, and everyone working here seems to have a great attitude. This lovely establishment is the brainchild of Lindsay and Richard Hattaway; he cooks and she runs the front of the house. They met in the Atlanta area; he’s from Georgia and she’s from Opelika, Alabama (which is ironically 45 minutes from my hometown). Their goal was to bring “honest food with the charm of Southern hospitality” to Walla Walla, and I think they’ve done a damn good job of that.

This beautiful bottle of French sparkling rosé is just $38, and it’s our go to here.

First: a snack – corn bread with rosemary honey butter. It was truly perfection; I could eat a dozen of these.

As for appetizers, we always get the pimento cheese and the celery parmesan salad. The salad is one of the best I’ve ever had, it’s light and delicious and flavorful and the texture is crunchy and perfect. The pimento cheese is made with Beecher’s Cheese so you know it’s good and it’s topped with a tomato jam,

And look at that beauty – I give you the Chicken and Grits. Fried chicken schnitzel, spicy datil grit cake, backyard sauce, pickles and sweet pickled peppers (swoon). The fried chicken was perfect and the backyard sauce is almost like a garden herbed tzatziki (it’s insanely delicious).

These were new on the menu and of course we had to try them. Allow me to introduce you to Hattaway’s Dungeness Crab Fritters. They are served over a drizzle of cayenne spiced honey and the combination is absolute bliss.