History and inspiration
It All Started with a Loving Grandmother
Ms. Pearl’s mother died when she was very young and, as a result, Pearl and her siblings were raised by their grandmother, Sarah Duncan. Duncan, who everyone knew as “Momma”, owned and operated Duncan’s Grocery on South 8th Avenue in Laurel. The store sold grocery items and had a restaurant inside that provided hot meals to locals for over 50 years- from the 1930s through the 1970s.
Ms. Pearl loved watching “Momma” cook for the customers at their restaurant and the experience instilled in her a lifelong love of cooking and an entrepreneurial spirit. “It was exciting for me to see them in there cooking with the big pots and pans,” explained Ms. Pearl with eyes sparkling. “The thing I remember most was when she was cooking a cake, she would save me a little cake mix and I would make a cake along with her. She would put it in a little pan of its own and that would be my cake!”
Pearl Campbell: The Shining Jewel of Laurel, Mississippi
When Ms. Pearl decided to open her own business in 2017, she knew that she wanted to follow in her grandmother’s footsteps. Soon after opening the diner, she was featured on HGTV’s “Home Town” (Season 2, Episode 7).
People around the world fell in love with the bubbly yet tough woman of faith and visitors from every state and several countries have come to Pearl’s to enjoy the best in southern comfort food while Sarah Duncan looks on from her place above the dining counter, encouraging Pearl in her life and cooking, just as she has always done.
Visitors to Pearl's Diner witness Pearl Campbell and her legacy of hugging, kissing,-and praying with her customers.
"God put me in a jewelry store where mac and cheese, and fried chicken become the shining jewels! "
Southern Soul Food at Its Best
Pearl’s Diner offers a menu of good ole Southern soul food. Each member of the Campbell family plays a role in the diner.
There are certain items that remain on the menu every day like Ms Pearl's delicious fried chicken, mac and cheese, black-eyed peas, and rice and gravy. Depending on availability, different main menu items and sides are added each day. For instance, Thursdays are usually Meatloaf Thursdays and on Fridays, catfish fillets and fall-off-the-bone ribs are added. In addition, collard greens or turnip greens may be available and are added to the menu along with candied yams and/or baked sweet potato, and lima beans or green beans, to name a few. Each day visitors to Pearl’s Diner have a choice of at least four main dishes and six sides.
Follow Ms. Pearl on Instagram or Facebook and you will see the daily menu posted there as well as on this Website. Instagram: #eatatpearls. Facebook: Pearl’s Diner.
Pearl’s Diner is open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.