Tour the World in Prattville, AL

The region's dining scene is eye opening and mouthwatering.

By Amy Antonation on June 26, 2023

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Prattville’s diverse restaurant scene might come as a surprise if all you expect from this middle Alabama city is Southern cuisine. However, Prattville boasts a mix of local and international flavors, from Cajun comfort food to Vietnamese dishes. With residents who are proud to support their local brewers, bakers, chefs and other culinary craftsmen, there’s truly community around the table here.

Diners can take a culinary trip around the world simply by traversing a stretch of road that starts in downtown Prattville and heads due east.

Start with Cindy’s Cafe, a casual, down-home spot that serves up diner classics with a touch of Italy; spaghetti with meatballs and chicken parmesan share menu space with country-fried steak. Venture to West Main Street to Fox’s Pizza Den, which turns out creative pies. Diners and drinkers can also sit adjacent to Fox’s in Teddy’s Bourbon Bar, which offers a huge selection of high-end bourbon in addition to allowing imbibers to order from the pizza menu.

Born on the Bayou

Next stop: Uncle Mick’s Cajun Market & Café, which is owned and run by Mickey Thompson. The former real estate investor credits his introduction to Cajun cuisine to a longtime Cajun employee who eventually became a friend and cooking teacher.

“He worked for me for 17 years, and we cooked and we ate and we cooked and we ate,” Thompson says.

Eventually, Thompson retired from real estate. He opened Uncle Mick’s in 2009, and he credits the eatery’s success to its uniqueness in the region.

“There are not really any Cajun restaurants around here,” he says, explaining that his buffet-style restaurant also allows customers to sample every one of the 12 to 15 entrees on the menu before ordering.

That’s enticing to diners who may otherwise be wary of Cajun cuisine because of the (incorrect) assumption that it’s overly spicy – though Thompson says, “I’ve got some hot homemade seasoning I make, so you can always spice it up.”

Shrimp à la crème is Uncle Mick’s bestseller.

“I had to have a few mild things for (people) who don’t want any spice at all,” says Thompson, who admits his personal favorite is chicken and sausage gumbo.

The eatery’s recent history proves its popularity. After a devastating fire in August 2022 that resulted in a six-month closure for renovations, Uncle Mick’s reopened in February 2023 to crowds that were double and triple regular business.

Mexican Radio

Save room for a bite or three at Los Mayas Mexican Restaurant, where co-owner Clemente Rocha says the parrillada – a feast of chicken, shrimp, steak and pork with grilled cactus paddles and queso fresco – is a popular choice.

“That one sells a lot in the Hispanic community,” says Rocha, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1994 and promptly rose through the ranks in the hospitality industry.

He spent a few years in Montgomery before settling down in Prattville, managing restaurants until he became part owner of Los Mayas. He originally commuted to Los Mayas’ first location in Wetumpka, but he was thrilled to be able to stay closer to home when the restaurant opened a Prattville outpost in the summer of 2017.

The city offers the best of both worlds, Rocha says – a growing community that’s still small enough to offer true neighborliness.

“One of the main reasons I’m here is it’s a small town,” he says. “If you don’t know (people) by name, you recognize their faces, and everybody is friendly.”

And just as he’s seen Prattville grow over the last two decades, with the addition of good manufacturing jobs and increased downtown development, he’s seen his customers’ palates develop, too. The majority of his customers are non-Hispanic diners who, he says, “definitely get more adventurous.” He points to lengua, a Mexican preparation of beef tongue, saying it’s grown in popularity with his customers over the years, despite being a hard sell to most diners just a few years ago.

The Encore

Diners with a taste for Asian flavors can find LáTaste Vietnamese Cuisine, which serves oversized, steaming bowls of pho. And finally, at the end of your trek, is Sushi Ro, which serves sushi rolls, sashimi and nigiri, as well as Japanese teriyaki plates.