10/13/2026
❤️ WE ARE OPEN IN PURYEAR, TENNESSEE
I want to share a little of our story with you, Southern Fried & Sweet Tea began in Calvert City, Kentucky, in a building my husband owned.
For two wonderful years, Calvert City was home. We planned to keep that location open while also operating a restaurant in the Puryear, Tennessee, area—but life had other plans.
When my 83-year-old mother’s home burned down, she lost everything. Just 30 days later, my stepfather of 22 years passed away. After several surgeries, my mother needed me closer to her so we made the difficult decision to close our Calvert City location and focus on Puryear Tennessee.
What a blessing that decision has been! ❤️
The love and support from Henry County, Calloway County, Dover, Paris, Weakley Co, Carroll County and the surrounding communities have been incredible. Many of you came through our doors as customers and became dear friends.
You gave us a place to belong, and we will always be grateful.
After three wonderful years in Puryear, we know we need a larger restaurant. With only 53 indoor seats, we outgrew the space on our very first day. We added outdoor seating and music, but weather, our small dining room, and our limited kitchen make it difficult to serve everyone as comfortably and efficiently as we’d like.
We are not leaving Puryear. We simply need a larger space to better serve our customers and create opportunities to hire more staff.
We thought we had found the perfect building in Paris Tennessee with room for more than 125 seats, a larger kitchen, private parties, special events, and catering. Unfortunately, that location did not work out and thats ok. We have a plan and will announce it soon.
I want to give a very special thank-you to Kathy Ray the mayor for Paris Tennessee, Tara Wilson The Interim Executive Director the Chamber of Commerce, Gavin Moody from Moody Reality and Jonathan Lodge the Henry County Mayor for working with us, supporting us, brainstorming with us and letting us know that Paris, Tennessee wants us, stands behind us, and appreciates us. They have all been wonderful and we will come up with a solution.
We’re still at the red light, cooking the food you love and welcoming our wonderful customers every day.
Please come see us, bring your family and friends, and continue supporting us as we work toward the next chapter.
With love,
Paul, Betty, and the Southern Fried & Sweet Tea family ❤️
📍 Still at the red light in Puryear, Tennessee!
📞 731-247-5880
❤️ Sometimes a new chapter isn't about leaving something behind. It's about making room for the blessings still to come
