Found a great new soul food restaurant near The Villages
 

I don't eat fast food & I'm not a fan of corporate chain restaurants, & one of my chief complaints about this area is the lack of good independent restaurants and Asian / ethic restaurants. I was driving to Leesburg the other day & noticed that a new restaurant had opened in the old "Legend's Cafe" spot that went out of business. I checked reviews on YELP & they were universally pretty good, so I stopped in for lunch. The fried chicken was really good (the waitress told me that the chicken was breaded & fried to order, so would take about 15 minutes), and the collard greens were the best I've ever had anywhere!

As the name implies, it's a soul food restaurant, so it's not health food! Think fried chicken, fried shrimp & catfish, meat loaf, pork chops smothered in gravy, BBQ pork ribs, with sides like stewed okra, black-eyed peas, homemade Mac & cheese, candied yams, cornbread, and like I said, collard greens to die for.

No affiliation, just a fan who's hoping this restaurant makes it in a tough economy! Give 'em a try, lunch specials every day 11AM-4PM.

Darrell Kelley’s Soul Delicious
430 US-441, Fruitland Park

We’re going there this weekend!

The Mac & cheese and candied yams are excellent. Fried chicken great, meatloaf OK.
It’s not fancy.
If you want Q go up the street to IBBQ Express, it’s better for Q, sides comparable.
Neither is health food.

Soul food? Might be good for the soul, but definitely not for the cardiovascular system.

I don’t know my grands lived into their 90s, on southern cooking. Maybe it was because they went out back, gathered the vegetables, fruit for ice cream, and chased down the chicken to fry. Ya know no phosphates, nitrates or additives of any kind, could’ve attributed to longer life.

Yes, I would like a healthier option. Hard to find here. Harvest used to have a great vegetable soup but no longer. All soups here are the same cream based soups.

It is on our bucket list also. Please let us know what you think.

Legends is still open. It’s just across the street in the shopping center

We have also ate at Darrell Kelley’s Soul Delicious and it was fantastic.. Try the mac and cheese

IBBQ on 441 also excellent.

Legends is not closed
 

Just a correction to your post.
Legends did not go out of business.
They moved to a larger building in the shopping center just down the road from where they were on the left.
Thanks for info on new soul place.

Just a "heads up". The Legends moved to the east side of 441.

Did Legends move further down the road after closing?:icon_wink:

Thank you from the bottom of this southern girl’s heart! It’s now on my “to go to” list!