TEXARKANA, Ark.-- Step into Big Mama's Crockpot and one's senses are immediately inundated with the scents of home cooking. The air wafts of spices, meats, vegetables and more, hints of what's to come. The dishes are mostly cooked daily in an array of crock pots, bringing the dishes to full flavor and keeping them heated for hungry diners.
"My mother declared we needed to do this 20 years ago," said Sharon Batts, one of the owners. "Unfortunately, she fell ill and I had to care for her. She passed away in 2016, but the idea and the plans remained. So later, we got together and put the plan in play. And now we have Big Mama's Crockpot, in her honor."
The menu changes daily, but one thing that remains is that it is about home cooking.
"I began learning how to cook when I was five," Batts said. "I would stand on a stool in the kitchen, watching my great-grandmother cook. Over time, I picked up the knowledge and now it is time to put it to work here."
Big Mama's Crockpot opened up in November and already audiences have started indicating favorites.
"They especially seem to like our chicken spaghetti and smothered pork chops," she said.
To honor the generations before that taught the staff of Big Mama's Crockpot to cook, they will be decorating a section of the wall inside the restaurant with pictures of Batts' great-grandmother and her daughters, the original "Big Mamas" and the ones who taught the ladies in the staff how to do what they do.
Their plans don't stop there, either.
"We want to turn this into a franchise," said Batts. "And we don't think it will be that hard. We are working with crockpots. Easy to set up."
(Big Mama's Crockpot is located at 1313 E. 9th St.)
Serving it up daily, Big Mama's Crockpot treats Texarkana diners to homestyle cooking. (Staff photo by Junius Stone)