Lula Southern Cookhouse

Chef-owner Bradley Gilmore (North Carolina native) + Brittany Socha Gilmore + Chef Brandon West; named for Bradley’s grandmother Lula from Pittsboro, NC. Plaza Provisions vendor (one of 5 inside the food hall per plaza-provisions).

Description

Lula Southern Cookhouse is the chef-owner operation of Bradley Gilmore + Brittany Socha Gilmore + Brandon West. Bradley Gilmore is born and raised in Pittsboro, North Carolina — he grew up in the kitchen with his grandmother Lula, whose name + cooking inspire the restaurant.¹² Bradley + Brittany have been creating, cooking, and catering in KC for 22 years; they met Brandon West 15 years ago and the three now co-own + operate Lula.

The cuisine is true Southern — Chesapeake to Low Country to New Orleans inspirations — not “Midwestern Southern.” The signature whole fried chicken ($75 with three sides) is widely described as the best fried chicken in Kansas City: Campo Lindo chicken brined 24 hours in brown sugar / garlic / sage, buttermilk-dipped, dredged in flours + cornstarch + seasoning, fried in peanut oil.¹

Lula opened in November 2022 at the edge of the Crossroads in the former Nara sushi space (Nara had 14 years in that location). The operation has since become one of the Plaza Provisions food-hall vendors (per plaza-provisions).

Tier classification

Tier 1 — Chef-owner KC-resident operation; multi-decade KC catering + cooking tenure.

Criterion match: chef-owner operation (Bradley Gilmore lead, with co-owners); KC-resident operators (Bradley + Brittany have been operating in KC for 22 years; Brandon West joined 15 years ago); independent (not chain; not corporate).

Methodology note: Bradley Gilmore is not KC-native (Pittsboro, NC). The criterion’s “roots” framing applies to Bradley’s deliberate KC commitment, not requiring KC-birthplace.

Re-verification (2026-07-11): Confirmed — Bradley Gilmore (NC native) and wife Brittany Socha Gilmore “have been creating, cooking and catering in KC for 22 years,” meeting Chef Brandon West en route; the three co-own and operate Lula plus Kravin’ It KC catering and the Davidson event space. The 22-year KC tenure clears the doctrine’s 20+-year KC-tenure path independent of the editorial-roots reading, so Tier 1 is solid — no open question. (Source: The Pitch KC — “Bradley Gilmore’s new concept Lula”; IN Kansas City Magazine, accessed 2026-07-11.)

Menu

Last verified: 2026-06-17 · Source: Lula Southern Cookhouse official site + Kansas City Magazine · URL(s): https://www.lulakc.com/, https://kansascitymag.com/lula-southern-cookhouse-is-serving-up-real-southern-food-not-midwestern-southern-food/ · Confidence: High

True Southern — Chesapeake to Low Country to New Orleans — across day-part menus (Brunch & Lunch, Happy Hour, Supper). Signatures lead below.

Signatures

• Whole fried chicken — Campo Lindo bird brined 24 hours in brown sugar / garlic / sage, buttermilk-dipped, dredged in flours + cornstarch + seasoning, fried in peanut oil; widely called KC’s best. $75 whole with three sides; $40 half with two sides.³⁴
• Shrimp & grits — charred shrimp over creamed white-cheddar grits, with crispy fried pig ears.⁴
• Blackened catfish — with collard greens and dirty rice.⁴
• NOLA pot pie — oysters, crawfish, shrimp, and andouille sausage.⁴

Appetizers / starters

• Blue crab pimento cheese fritter⁴
• Pig tails — among the best-selling apps.⁴
• Triple dip — pimiento cheese, ham salad, and crawfish.⁴
• Fried okra; cheese curds.³

Plates / supper

• Grilled beef coulotte — with blue cheese grits.⁴
• Shrimp boil³
• Chicken spaghetti³
• Gumbo; Brunswick stew (lima beans, rabbit, pheasant).⁴

Brunch & lunch

• Chicken & waffle³
• Fried chicken with biscuits (recipe perfected with chef Jonathan Justus).³

Sides

• Creamed white-cheddar grits; collard greens; dirty rice; mashed potatoes + gravy; green beans with bacon; mac and cheese; cornbread; biscuits.³⁴

Desserts

• Banana pudding — with peanut butter cookies.⁴
• Apple crisp à la mode.⁴

Sources

Footnotes

1. Lula Southern Cookhouse official site. https://www.lulakc.com/. Source for ownership trio + Bradley’s NC background + Lula naming origin + 22-year KC tenure. ↩ ↩²

2. Startland News — “New lease on life: ‘Southern cookhouse’ bringing fried flavor to former sushi space in Crossroads” (2022-04). https://startlandnews.com/2022/04/lula-southern/ — co-owner Bradley Gilmore; 1617 Main St; 10-year lease. ↩

3. Lula Southern Cookhouse official site — menu sections (Brunch & Lunch, Happy Hour, Supper). https://www.lulakc.com/. Accessed 2026-06-17. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

4. Kansas City Magazine — “Lula Southern Cookhouse is serving up ‘real Southern food—not Midwestern Southern food.’” https://kansascitymag.com/lula-southern-cookhouse-is-serving-up-real-southern-food-not-midwestern-southern-food/. Accessed 2026-06-17. Source for specific dish descriptions + fried chicken pricing. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹²