Food for the KIA SOUL

When I was offered the opportunity to test drive the KIA SOUL, aside from being super pumped I instantly began thinking of where I could go to show her off,  and as light bulb moments go, I jumped up and knew right away it would only be fitting to take the  KIA SOUL to  some of  my favorite soul food spots in Los Angeles to commemorate the experience.

This will have been my second time driving a KIA and much like the first, I was not disappointed. To see the places I hit up and to get my honest opinion about my experience in the car read more about my soul food excursion in the KIA SOUL after the jump!

To be honest, I had no idea where I wanted to go on my soul food adventure, there are just SO many great places in So. Cal that cater to folks who love soul food. So like any social media enthusiast would do, I asked my Instagram followers for their input. I got some really great suggestions and decided on 3 places. A place I’d never tried before, a popular staple, and since I’m a Long Beach girl to my core I chose a spot that I love in the LBC.

First on my list was Comfort LA  a would be “hole in the wall” (if they had any), pop up restaurant in the Downtown Los Angeles Arts District. Comfort LA is all about “conscious comfort food”, there are no hormones added to any of their dishes and everything is farm to table.

I walked right up to the kitchen window, placed my order and in less than 15 minutes I was tearing up one of the BEST pieces of fried chicken I had ever tasted. No really ya’ll it was right up there with my mama’s! They drizzle a sauce they’ve coined as “sweet heat sauce” and the flavor is truly the perfect mix of sweet and savory.

To top it off the staff couldn’t have been more gracious and I felt totally at home  as I sat in the parking lot of their makeshift restaurant. The only negative about this spot is the Friday – Sunday business hours. However if you find yourself partying late night know that they stay open until 3:00 A.M. Friday and Saturday.

The next stop on my KIA Soul Food expedition (see what I did there 😉 would be at an LA staple. Mama Joan’s   in Ladera Heights is a family owned restaurant offering good old southern style food with no pretension. This is the food your grandmamma made with not a care about words like “hormones” or “gluten-free”. Most of the menu is probably not intended for the health conscious but nevertheless gives you just the comfort you need on a Sunday after church.

I had the red beans and rice, dressing, cabbage and red snapper, I was NOT disappointed but did need a nap right after :/ . The staff here is quite kind and attentive and I loved the familial atmosphere.

Now you can’t have all of that savory without some sweet, so my last and final stop came full circle as I ended up right back home at Ma’Dears in the LBC to enjoy dessert.

3 sister’s run this cute little cafe and take their recipe’s directly from their Grandma Shugg  (Ma’Dear) a Shreveport Louisiana transplant who would cook and bake up a storm every June when she would come to visit the them. The business has grown from a small hot dog-cart to a full-fledged restaurant after 10 years of hard work and continues to grow today.

Because I’ve never met a dessert I didn’t like, I tried 3 of the sweet treats Ma’Dear is best known for- sweet potato pie, 7 up Cake, and their banana pudding pie. Every single bite was delish! The 7up cake was light and fluffy and I loved the tiny crisp of sugar I could taste in each bite.

The sweet potato pie was super decadent and there are no real words to truly express how much I fell in love with the banana pudding pie. I can only say I don’t even like banana’s but I ate them in this pie.

I’d like to thank the folks over at Drive Shop for letting me test drive the KIA SOUL and encouraging all of this gluttony! Now on to my review of the car…

I honestly did NOT want to give this car back! I’d seen them on the road many times and I truly never game them a second glance until I was behind the wheel of one so my pro’s are going to FAR outweigh my cons on this one guys.

PRO’s

• Super comfy and spacious! If you have kids or happen to use your car for transporting things, then this is the car for you!
• The interior is plush! The mood lighting near the speakers was an especially nice touch.

• At 24 city and 31 highway MPG, this car is good on gas!
• The sound system was EVERYTHING! I love a good sound system and this one was clear and crisp.
• Working the controls was super easy as well, there’s a lot of bells and whistles but they were easy to figure out.
• The horsepower was 130 to 164 HP so I had no trouble accelerating once I was on the freeway.
• I loved the body of this car, it looks quite different then the other KIA SOUL’s I’ve seen on the highway

 

• And the BEST part of this car…THE PRICE POINT! The car starts at $15,000 and goes up to $21, 000.

Cons

Now guys I always give it to you straight but I could not find ONE flaw in this car! I even asked my friends (a hard bunch to please) and even they liked the car. So this one will probably come down to your own personal taste.

So tell me, what do you think of the car? Are any of these restaurants appealing to you? I’d love to know in the comments below!