Emma's Family Restaurant

We stopped on the way back from Virginia at 2pm on a Sunday.

Hubby had a skillet tot lunch that had tater tots covered with cheese, bacon and chives. He had onion rings as a side. I ordered the chicken croquets with fries, broccoli and added a side salad.

The food was very fresh and hot. I loved the chicken croquets - they were lightly breaded and not as heavy as expected- covered with some gravvy - I do wish I had mashed potatoes with them- although the crinkle fries were amazing!

I ordered the homemade lemon meringue pie and hubby had coffee.

Overall great experience and we highly recommend!!! Warm and family friendly with lots of choices !

I’ve driven by many times and thought the full parking lot was a good sign. Now I’m happy I got to stop by and get lunch. First just amazing service. The staff was flying around and keeping everybody happy. It was after church time on Sunday and the place was hopping. I’ve got a lot of silver in my hair but was loving feeling like a young’un in that crowd.

I got a salad that was really really well done. The dice on the veg was done by a real pro. That attention to detail made me real hopeful about the rest of my meal. I got the French Dip which is one of my guilty pleasures in life. WOW was it good. Like top 3 ever good, and I try them all over when I see it on the menu.

I saved it in my list for regular visits. Highly recommend!

Today we visited Emma’s in Greenwood, DE with my father-in-law’s Bike Club Group. We were the only Black family there, and unfortunately, this being our first experience at the restaurant left us with an uneasy feeling before we even had the chance to eat.

I’m also visiting from North Carolina before relocating overseas to South Korea, so hearing a waitress later tell another patron that she had “seen us there all the time” immediately stood out to me, because it simply was not true. Neither myself nor my in-laws have ever been in that establishment before today.

Maybe it was intentional. Maybe it wasn’t. But sometimes you know when energy feels different.

The looks. The tone. The lack of warmth. Watching others around you receive a different experience while you’re left questioning if you’re imagining it.

That’s the exhausting part about racism in 2026. It doesn’t always come with slurs or loud disrespect. Sometimes it shows up quietly in service, body language, avoidance, and atmosphere. Subtle enough to be denied. Strong enough to be felt.

We stayed because it was a scheduled meeting with the bike club, other than that we definitely would have left sooner.

And before anyone says “maybe she was just having a bad day,” understand this: Black families are tired of constantly having to second-guess whether poor treatment is coincidence or bias.

In addition to that they did an excellent job of keeping their stories straight about it being a communication problem about whom was responsible for the table. Which I find interesting considering the layout & number of tables and booths.

Nobody wants special treatment. We just notice when the treatment feels different.

The writing on the wall is this: people still remember how you make them feel long after the food hits the table.