I grew up with fried chicken. Fried chicken, greens of all sorts, black-eye peas, cornbread (not the sweet stuff), the nine. Wash it down to the world's sweetest tea, and how I didn't spend my childhood obese is a mystery. For this reason, when I see a mom and pop stand open up that caters to the southern cookin' crowd, I get very excited. And the smaller the better. 
So, when I saw D.D.s open up on New York Avenue where Sweet Melissa's used to be, I got really excited. Sweet Melissa's was a place I hated to see leave because the food rocked and I loved the atmosphere. Replacing it ain't easy. Add to that, when you put a sign out that says "Best Gizzards and Livers in Town" you had better bring it. 
I mentioned to Mr. Rob the previous night that I had been dying to hit up some gizzards and to my surprise, he enjoys the gizzards too. So we decided to hit D.D.s about 11:00 the next day.
Arriving at 10:50, they were just finishing getting set up and we were greeted by a fella behind the window, who introduced himself as Milton. Very nice guy and he has that home-townie feeling that makes you feel comfortable, as if you're eating at his house. Exactly what I was hoping for and already a great sign. I ordered a 2 piece dark meat with 1/2 pound of gizzards, collards and green beans on the side. Rob got the 2 piece white meat with 1/2 pound of livers, and ordered the same sides as I did. First, I will say, the greens are not the filled with pork, dripping in fat variety that I am used to. In fact, I couldn't find any meat in there at all. The flavour was great though. Very sweet compared to what I'm used to and something I will definitely be ordering again. Green beans were good as well.
The 2 piece dark meat was fantastic. A thin floury crust fried fresh as we were sitting there (don't go if you're in a hurry) and really tender meat. The meat was also reminiscent of fresh-killed chicken, not the bleached clean type you find at fast food joints. Not sure if I am right in this assumption, but I dig it.
Gizzards? Phenom. Flaky crust, nice and chewy. Not tough or overcooked, however. Perfect for what your asking for. Gizzards are not for everyone. Kind of a poor man's fried clam, but way better in my opinion. Rob wouldn't let me have any of his livers, so I guess I'm outta luck there.
For my money, I love this southern food and the people who make it. Great roadside atmosphere and very reasonable prices. I'll certainly be back many times and I encourage anyone who has been curious about D.D.s to stop in. Cheers!
