Rib Plate

This is real soul food – great Southern cooking offering up “good times” comfort food that tastes delicious and brings back warm memories of family meals.

Short ribs that fall off the bone, meatloaf, ox tails and fried chicken surrounded by greens and yams or rice and gravy or macaroni and cheese, with a sweet, hot corn muffin… almost makes you want to skip church and go straight to Bessie’s Daughter’s on North Lincoln Avenue.

The restaurant’s Soul Food Sunday brings back great Sunday dinners in a tasteful dedication to owner Helga Kuhn’s mother Bessie Lee and her kitchen back in Saginaw, Illinois.

Helga Kuhn

“Lots of laughter and clowning around was the best part of being in Momma’s kitchen,” Helga remembers “not to mention the delicious food!”

Most of the soul-stirring recipes Helga uses are her mother Bessie’s. She’s added a little bit here and a little bit there, but the essence is that of her mother. Music played in the establishment is from “back in the day,” very little slips in past 1985, when Helga’s mother died.

Bessie’s Daughter’s Soulful Tacos is a family establishment, run by mother and daughter, Helga Kuhn and Fahren James. The décor of the restaurant is warm, with pictures of Helga’s family on the walls. Taken by her uncle, they provide a window into Helga’s family and invite us to share in their joys and sorrows – moment in time captured by the camera and displayed for us to appreciate. The mosaic tiled counter was made by Helga and her daughter.

Catfish Plate

A lot of love and thought went into the making of this restaurant and it shows in the interior and comes through in the flavor of the wonderful food.

Curious about the restaurant’s name?  Soulful Tacos? 

Pasadena Now food critic Candice Merril says that if  “you’re wondering what a ‘soulful’ taco is, it’s a corn tortilla shell that is pan fried so that it has a slightly crispy, somewhat chewy texture. It doesn’t shatter when you bite into it, but has a wonderful crunch and you won’t find florescent red grease running down your arm. The tacos are filled with lean ground beef or ground chicken seasoned with a secret spice blend, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. These are not the mass-made industrial style tacos we are used to. Each one is hand made; the lettuce is prepared on the premises and the tomatoes are quartered grape tomatoes. They are in one word delicious.”

Bessie's Daughter's Soulful Tacos, 2234 Lincoln Ave., Altadena. (626) 798-2344 | Hours: Tuesday - Thursday 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday - 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday - 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Soulfood Sunday - 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.  Open for special events and private parties on Mondays.