Big Mama's Kitchen and Catering

A classic dining experience in Omaha is partaking in some good old comfort food and Big Mama’s is the place for that. At Big Mama’s, ‘every meal is like Sunday dinner.’ Each meal you get here, no matter what time of the day it is, fills you up with fresh food that tastes like it came out of your grandmother’s kitchen. Come here for a breakfast casserole or the oven fried chicken, Big Mama’s does it right.

For a fluffy bite of summer, opt for cornbread made from scratch at Big Mama’s Kitchen, in North Omaha. You can even take home one of Big Mama’s housemade cornbread mixes to fix it at home.

In 2007, Gladys and her sisters helped their mother achieve her lifelong dream of owning a restaurant, opening Big Mama’s Kitchen & Catering (www.bigmamaskitchen.com). Understanding the importance of the relationship between the community and local business, one of Big Mama’s core values is to provide job opportunities for felons and job skills opportunities for members of the community who have never been employed. Big Mama’s famous soul food has since become a fixture in the Omaha community and has also gained national notoriety, appearing on the Food Network, the Travel Channel, Sundance Channel, the Cooking Channel, and a host of local and national publications.

2112 North 30th Street, Accelerator Suite 201, Omaha, NE 68111, (402) 455-6262. Patricia “Big Mama” Barron originally opened her restaurant inside a former school building in North Omaha in 2007, but in early 2020 the business moved to the Highlander Accelerator project, a new food hall off North 30th street. Barron’s daughter, Gladys Harrison, runs the new space, where she maintains her mother’s recipes, including skillet cornbread that has been in the family for more than 100 years, sweet potato pie, and oven-fried chicken.

Mama’s Kitchen & Catering is a family-owned and -operated business specializing in soul food and traditional American cuisine. We offer a unique variety of delicious homemade appetizers, entrées, cakes and desserts, but we’re best known for our famous oven-fried chicken and our delectable sweet potato pie ice cream!. Gladys Harrison, runs the new space, where she maintains her mother’s recipes, including skillet cornbread that has been in the family for more than 100 years, sweet potato pie, and oven-fried chicken.

With a century-old family recipe, the fried chicken at Big Mama’s Kitchen and Catering had earned national attention. Guy Fieri brought his television show “Diners, Drive-ins & Dives” to the North Omaha restaurant to sample Big Mama’s oven-fried chicken. Using a special recipe to create a unique flavor, people from all over flock to Big Mama’s to try the chicken and a few southern favorites, including collard greens, fried okra, and sweet potato pudding.

Gladys Harrison took over her family’s restaurant in a bright new space in the Highlander Accelerator Building in North Omaha after her mother, “Big Mama” Patricia Barron, passed away. Harrison keeps her mother’s spirit alive, serving recipes passed down generations, and making guests feel at home. Dig into comforting dishes like fried catfish, macaroni and cheese, greens, and cornbread with honey butter.

In 2007, at age 62, Patricia “Big Mama” Barron opened the doors of her first brick-and-mortar restaurant in the cafeteria of the building on 45th and Bedford streets that was formerly the Nebraska School for the Deaf. She previously ran a popular catering business. The next year, the restaurant was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

If it’s soul food you’re after, look no further than Big Mama’s Kitchen & Catering. Enjoy a full gauntlet of carefully crafted southern delicacies, including fried okra with plum sauce, tender fried catfish, cornbread with honey butter, fried chicken and more. It’s no wonder this place was featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives!

Big Mama’s Kitchen & Catering is a family-owned-and-operated business specializing in soul food and traditional American cuisine. This Omaha stop has been featured on the Food Network and Travel Channel multiple times and is known for their famous oven-fried chicken and delectable sweet potato pie ice cream!

Television staple Big Mama’s is known for their generous helpings of uniquely delicious appetizers, cakes, desserts, and dinners, and now you can get a taste of their signature flavors at home. Shop their branded Oven Fried Chicken Seasoning and Dry Rub, both great for meat, poultry, fish and vegetables.

2112 North 30th Street, Accelerator Suite 201, Omaha, NE 68111Phone: 402-455-6262 Visit Website. A post shared by Big Mama’s Kitchen (@bigmamasomaha). Big Mommas kitchen is located in historic Omaha and is a family-owned soul food restaurant.

For more local and intimate dining, groups can enjoy homemade soul food at Big Mama’s or dine in the historic General George Crook Mansion, which can accommodate up to 80 guests for a private, sit-down dinner within the home’s museum.

Big Mama’s has been serving hearty soul food for 14 years and brings a lot of life to The Dining Room at the Highlander. Photo via Big Mama’s Kitchen’s Facebook page.

The panel, minus Steve Gordon, also went to Big Mama’s Kitchen to try her fried chicken, which has been featured on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.