A new restaurant opened last week in downtown Fayetteville.
Down South Family Restaurant & Bar opened Friday at 106 Person St., the former site of Caruso’s Confections, which served Italian fare and desserts from 2018 to 2023.
Owned by Fayetteville native Demario Wilson and his wife Ayana Wilson, the new eatery bills itself as an elevated American southern restaurant and full-service bar.
With seating for about 40 inside and a dozen on the patio, the 2,300-square-foot restaurant’s most popular dish thus far has been the southern egg rolls made with collard greens, candied yams and macaroni and cheese, Ayana Wilson said.
“You get a taste of everything in one bite,” she said Tuesday. “With the sweetness from the yams, the salty and smoky collard greens, the cheese from the macaroni and cheese, your taste buds just dance.”
The food is made from scratch and cooked to order, Wilson said, with dishes like fried ribs and fried chicken striking a chord with downtown diners.
Wings, which can be ordered by the six-count or dozen, with sauces and rubs like barbecue, mango habanero, hot honey and lemon pepper, have been in demand too, she said.