Sandra's Next Generation

My wife, nephew and I drove almost an hour to have a beautiful Sunday lunch at Sandra's next generation. Located in New Haven we were greeted warmly outside by the owner who was so nice to point us to the menu and the specials board. Due to the space restraints the ordering is done right inside the door with the menu displayed on the front window. You place your order and give a cell number then when your order is ready you pick up and pay. Very smooth operation with many great employees to answer any questions or offer suggestions. I got a combo platter of braised ox tail over Caribbean rice with fried chicken, collard greens and a seafood Mac and cheese. Let me tell you the food was delicious, plentiful a great value and made with love!! Everything is made fresh...nothing is bought as is. From the corn bread (moist, flavorful, and they heated it up for us) to the desserts ( strawberry banana pudding, peach cobbler, sweet potato pie) to the sweet tea and mango lemonade it was delicious. I even went back and ordered more platters to take home (shrimp and grits, slow cooked beef ribs, turkey, stuffing and gravy). Do yourself a favor and stop by Sandra's next generation and try this amazing food. New Haven isn't just known for its delicious pizzas.....it has some pretty epic soul food that is made with care and love.

We tried to order online, but because our bill would've been more than $75 so we had to go in to order. We were waited on quickly, but had probably about a 30 minute wait for our food. We sat outside in their cute little seating area.
Hennessy fried Salmon 10/10 mac and cheese 9/10 kale greens 8/10 rice wasn't good it was hard. I love kale. I've never had them this style so they were different, but they were still good.
Also, I got their peach cobbler 11/10 and mango lemonade.
Would definitely return !

I have two words for you: Soul Roll. What a simple yet genius idea to fill egg roll wrapping with the deliciousness of soul food, and I got mine with BBQ chopped turkey. It's pure magic.

I got the Hennessy wings lunch combo with mac & cheese and yams. Although I didn't taste Hennessy at all, the wings were INCREDIBLE. They're big, sweet, and sticky. The sides were also fine.

The reason this isn't a 5 star review is because of the "fried chicken sandwich" I ordered. They gave me two chicken wings and two slices of bread. That is NOT a sandwich. Since it was my first time trying Sandra's I wanted to get a variety of options so I got fried chicken sandwich, which you would think is different than chicken wings. Nope...I ended up with two different chicken wing orders. Now, since me having ordered this, I've learned many southern restaurants will offer sandwiches in this manner. I wouldn't have minded if it was advertised that way on the menu. Fried chicken sandwiches have been a craze in the last few years so I was expecting an actual sandwich in-line with what everyone else is doing and not just two chicken wings and bread. To be fair, the chick was incredible, I just feel a bit misled.

I will definitely be back!

Food is always delicious! I ordered fried chicken wings w/ collard greens & Mac & cheese. It comes w/ cornbread. The cornbread was nice & moist as always! It's hard to find a restaurant that doesn't have dry cornbread. The collard greens had chucks of turkey. The chicken wings were fried to perfection not over or under cooked. The Mac & cheese was moist & cheesy. I recommend ordering in advance b/c they're so busy. Staff is always friendly & courteous! It's a little expensive but what isn't nowadays.

No one seems to have solved the major issue inflation is having especially on its negative impact on formerly very successful restaurants. Customers are less and less satisfied with their overall dining experiences.

Everyone has complete empathy for the quantity of work, the effort and the passion that goes into making an awesome restaurant. However, savvy consumers are definitely reconsidering whether the value of going out for dinner is even worth it.

The major pitfalls such as ridiculous prices that have gone up significantly, quality and quantity of food and their portion size have gone down. The most troubling is especially the entire ambience of dining out feels at times like its very soul has been sucked out leaving little joy.

I religiously loved going to Sandra's place on Whitney Avenue and always felt confident that the prices, quantity, quality and the atmosphere was consistently phenomenal. Slowly, but surely, Sandra's next generation on Congress Avenue has been losing all of its former positives.

I used to look forward to, and love the size of the fried catfish main course. Since I have a difficult time deciding on all the other delicious sides, I usually have to order the vegetable platter with four sides, which include Fried Okra, Sweet Potato Fries, Baked Macaroni & Cheese and collard greens.

Unfortunately, while the prices have gone up, the value isn't there for the quantity of food. I certainly hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I would love to resume my regular ritual of returning to one of the best Soul food restaurants in the area.

My sweet tooth was in overdrive on Sunday so I decided to order some dessert and a side of mac & cheese. I already had ample leftovers at home so I bypassed on dinner, although I have had their dinner in the past and it is amazing.

I grew up a couple of blocks away from Sandra's. The food has always been A1. I decided to get a slice of their banana, pudding cake and cheesecake with the strawberry sauce. Initially, I wanted banana pudding, but I guess they were sold out. The layers in between the cake had a very pronounced banana flavor, which was great. So I'm definitely interested in going back to get some actual banana pudding once it's available. The cheesecake was also delicious. The graham cracker crust, cheesecake consistency, and light accent of strawberry sauce came together very well. A must try. If you ever want some mac & cheese, but do not want to make an entire dish, I highly recommend getting a side serving.

But, if you're hungry, opt for a full meal. Their combos are amazing. You can sample multiple meat options with various sides. A neighborhood staple but if you do not live close by definitely worth the drive or the delivery service fee.

We hadn't been to Sandra's since Covid and were very unhappy to find out, on a very rainy day, that they did not have any place to sit and eat anymore. We took out food but the woman who took our order was not very helpful and told us to wait outside (it was raining.) We sat in the car and a half hour later we got the text telling us the food was ready. We were not very happy with the whole situation and I even told Sandra how there was nothing on the website to say it was take out only. She was kind and asked us to give them another chance. We took home the food (we live 45 minutes away) and were prepared to flame them here. But then my husband and I each took a bite of the food. The food is a wonder - every bite is delicious. I had perfectly cooked salmon on a very flavorful rice, my husband had ribs with the best sweet potato fries we ever had.
So in conclusion - if you know what you are in for (take out - or on nice days there is outdoor seating) the food is fabulous. We will be back, better informed.

After seeing Sandra's make the top 100 Yelp list in the country, I knew I had to check them out over the weekend. After my meal, I ll have to admit they are one of the best soul food joints in CT. The variety of menu options is what really sets them apart from the rest. They offer bbq, jerk chicken, Rasta pasta, salmon, and all of your other soul food classics. They even have a deal where you can get an entree and 4 sides!! Truly a side lovers dream!

The true star of the meal was the Mac and cheese. Super cheesy and seasoned. I also really enjoyed the sweet potato cornbread and the option for kale greens. The restaurant is a bit on the smaller side, so I suggest ordering ahead to avoid long waits. Overall, Sandra's has all you want in a soul food joint! I can see why everyone ranks high on everyone's list.

The chicken was some of the best I have ever had, granted I'm not from the south or anything but just so crispy and salted to
Perfection. The collards were subtly sweet and so delicious. Plantains fire. Mac and cheese was exactly what I was looking for, and the corn bread was dense and delicious. We will be back!!!

First time here and the food was so good! Highly recommend! The wait wasn't long at all maybe 10 mins. Will definitely be back when I'm over this way again