Here is our limited list of Central Arkansas restaurants open Thanksgiving Day. It is very likely we have left out several worthwhile establishments. Inclusion is purely a matter of a restaurant, hotel, lodge, etc. providing information to us and does not in any way constitute an endorsement; absences do not constitute either proof that a restaurant isn't open or of any form of disdain on our part. Is your restaurant missing from this list? Email webreleases@arkansasonline.com with its address, Thanksgiving hours, any specials and phone number.
Note that reservations in the time of covid-19, if not mandatory, are still more important than usual.
◼️ Arthur's Prime Steakhouse, 16100 Chenal Parkway, will be open from 10:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Cost: $45 per person, $15 for children 7-12, $9 for children 3-6. The last reservation will be at 3:15. A to-go menu will also be available but we haven't seen it yet. (501) 821-1838.
◼️ Benihana, in the Wyndham Riverfront Hotel, 2 Riverfront Place, North Little Rock, will be open 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Thanksgiving, serving their current dinner menu. (So, no hibachi turkey.) Reservations are required — (501) 374-8081.
◼️ Bobby's Cafe, 18505 MacArthur Drive, North Little Rock, will be open 11 a.m.-2 p.m., serving only its Thanksgiving Day dinner. (501) 851-7888.
◼️ Outlets of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store this pandemic-ravaged year will be open 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; available all day: Grandma's Holiday Sampler, "a new breakfast tradition featuring hand-breaded country fried turkey alongside buttermilk pancakes." Or you can order in advance one of two Thanksgiving Heat n' Serve Feasts, complete meals that can be prepared in two hours — one that serves 8-10 and a smaller feast that serves 4-6. crackerbarrel.com.
◼️ Taj Mahal, 1520 Market St., Little Rock, will be open. Call for times: (501) 520-4900; Tajmahalar.com.
◼️ Verona Italian Restaurant, 190 Skyline Drive, Conway, is teaming up with Conway's PattiCakes Bakery to offer a free Thanksgiving Day dinner to those in need; Verona will serve turkey, stuffing, gravy and salad "at no cost for anyone in our community that can't be with family or can't afford to prepare it at home," while the food lasts, and PattiCakes will supply the desserts, according to its Facebook page. (501) 358-6801; veronasitalianrestaurantconway.com.
◼️ Denny's, IHOP and Waffle House locations are, mostly, open 24/7/365; some IHOPs close early on Thanksgiving Day. However, with the pandemic in play, check in advance to make sure.
◼️ And if you happen to be in, or headed to, the northwest corner of the state, The Hive, in the 21c Museum Hotel, 200 N.E. A St., Bentonville, will be open, 1-6 p.m. Chef Matt McClure's "classic" Thanksgiving menu includes pasture-raised turkey with cornbread stuffing, pole beans, gravy, whipped potatoes and cranberries and pecan pie, as well as "Hive favorites like ... campanelle with vermouth cream, Swiss chard and roasted squash." Reservations are a must; call (479) 286-6575.