Oh, Henry's
It’s easy to roll past Henry’s Delicatessen and Carry-out and assume that it’s just another bodega. But a double take of their vintage signage touting “home made sweet potato pie” was enough to entice us to investigate further.
Once inside, we discovered that Henry’s is a classic soul food joint with a menu covering all of the great country food standards. Henry’s has been around since 1968, and the weathered interior, replete with ancient duct work, certainly is a throwback to an earlier time.
As we spent about 15 minutes marveling at the array of options on their menu, a steady stream of customers kept filtering in to pick up orders that they had placed in advance.
We started off with their salmon cake sandwich, which turned out to be a real highlight. It’s barely $3, and yet the buttered and grilled toasty bun was generously stuffed with two enormous fried salmon cakes. The salmon cakes were relatively simple, relying on chopped green onions to add the appropriate bit of savor to the mince of salmon.
After surveying their various dinner platters, we knew that we had to try their fried chicken, as well as their smothered pork chops. The fried chicken managed to remain juicy even when we enjoyed leftovers the following day. The skin was appropriately crispy, though a bit thicker than we normally like, and while the visible spicing was adequate, we would have preferred it to be rather more peppery. Though we’ve certainly had better elsewhere, we were hardly disappointed.
The smothered pork chops overwhelmed us with their blanketing of thick, rich gravy. Unfortunately, the deep fried breading on each pork chop was thoroughly saturated with gravy by the time we got home, so the pork chops had lost nearly all of their crispness. Still, if you live nearby or are willing to scarf your smothered pork chops at one of the two stools along the counter in the back, then they are well worth having when freshly plated.
Though we were satisfied with our platters, the side dishes seemed to be where Henry’s does some of their best work. The cabbage and the collard greens were cooked in such a way that they somehow retained their freshness and a bit of vegetable rigidity instead of the wilted masses we’ve suffered through elsewhere. And both of these sides were also perfectly seasoned. In fact, the greens did not even require the usual requisite dressing of vinegar.
The blaze orange candied yams had a nice bit of spicing, and the fried chicken definitely benefited from nestling up against their sweet glaze. The mac ‘n’ cheese was sufficiently creamy and had a few of those crisp baked fragments that we love.
When selecting your bread accompaniment, skip the store-bought dinner roll option in favor of the homemade cornbread. The cornbread is dense and moist enough that instead of crumbling at the slightest touch, we could actually break off substantial pieces to submerge in the smothered pork chop gravy. In fact, this cornbread impressed us so much that we lamented not taking a chance on their cornbread stuffing.
But it’s the desserts that truly separate Henry’s from other local soul food purveyors. We were initially skeptical of their self-proclaimed designation as the “home of the sweet potato pie.” But they earned our respect with a sweet potato pie that is the very best we’ve ever had. Too often, sweet potato pie is an unremarkable starchy slab. But this pie had a velvety texture and just the right amount of sweetness and spice. The ultra-thin buttery crust is practically nonexistent, almost melting into the mousse-like mass of sweet potato.
And their peach cobbler is similarly wonderful. In fact, we haven’t had a peach cobbler like this since our last trip to Georgia. Unlike other local cobblers that employ pastry that is akin to a thick, crumpled pie shell, Henry’s uses soft and buttery nuggets of pastry that are the cobbler equivalent of the richness of a chocolate truffle. When suffused with the hot peach syrup, each bit of crumble is transcendent.
The sweet potato pie and peach cobbler are available daily. They also offer special desserts on occasion such as their homemade banana pudding.
Their sweet tea was heavily sweetened, but strong enough to avoid being cloying. And they do offer to mix it with lemonade in half ‘n’ half proportions, though we haven’t quite progressed to that level of consciousness.
We still haven’t had the opportunity to hit Henry’s for breakfast, but it’s worth noting that each of their breakfast platters is accompanied by fried apples and fatback.
Phoning in an order for pick up is probably the best way to go with Henry’s. Otherwise, you’ll spend about 20 to 25 minutes idling at the counter as your food is properly made to order. And though we love country food, we don’t necessarily enjoy being reminded of our excess indulgence the following day when our favorite jacket is still completely infused with the atomized funk of the deep fryer.
Henry’s Delicatessen & Carry-out
1704 U Street NW
(202) 265-3336