Dinner
Southern Dinner at Hattie's
Fried chicken, jambalaya, gumbo, and other Southern and Louisiana classics in the dining room Hattie Moseley Austin moved to Phila Street in 1968.
- Duration:
- 1.5 hr
Haunted Dining / Bar
Hattie's Restaurant
Southern and Louisiana-cuisine restaurant founded in 1938 by Hattie Moseley Austin, a Black Louisiana-born chef whose presence is said to linger in the dining room she ran for sixty years.
45 Phila Street, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Wheelchair Accessible
Research-Backed · 4 sources
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Southern and Louisiana mains with shareable sides; full bar in adjacent space.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Ground-floor restaurant; sidewalk entry.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1938 · 1938 Founding by Black Louisiana-Born Chef · Saratoga Springs Culinary Heritage · Continuous Operation Since 1938 · Hattie Moseley Austin's Personal Legacy
Hattie Moseley Austin was born Hattie Gray around 1900 in Saint Francisville, Louisiana. She moved north to Saratoga Springs and in 1938 — with $33, by her own account — opened Hattie's Chicken Shack on Federal Street. 'I didn't have but $33,' she said. 'I bought a stove, an icebox, table, and chairs.'
The restaurant developed a reputation across decades for its Southern cooking — particularly fried chicken — and for Hattie herself, who ran the dining room and kitchen well into her nineties. In 1968, the restaurant moved from its original Federal Street location to Phila Street in response to local urban renewal that demolished much of the original Federal Street block. The current Phila Street location has operated continuously since.
Hattie Moseley Austin died on April 23, 1998, at approximately 97 or 98 years old. The restaurant has continued under subsequent ownership while preserving the name, the menu identity, and the recipes she developed. Hattie's is featured on the I LOVE NY tourism site, on Discover Saratoga, and on numerous Black-history and culinary-history itineraries for upstate New York.
The Wikipedia entry on Hattie Moseley Austin documents her life and the restaurant's history; Saratoga.com and Discover Saratoga both treat her as one of the most important culinary and cultural figures of twentieth-century Saratoga Springs.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hattie_Moseley_Austin
- https://hattiesrestaurants.com/about-us/
- https://www.discoversaratoga.org/blog/stories/post/hattie-moseley-austin-founder-of-hatties-restaurant/
- https://www.saratoga.com/aboutsaratoga/history/hattie-moseley-austin/
Sensed presence
The haunted reputation of Hattie's Restaurant is tied directly to its founder rather than to any tragic event. According to Haunted Saratoga Ghost Tours, which features Hattie's as a regular stop on its routes alongside the Canfield Casino and the legend of Angeline, the Witch of Saratoga, staff and patrons have reported feeling Hattie's continued presence in the restaurant she ran for sixty years. The lore is one of stewardship — Hattie checking in on her kitchen — rather than dramatic apparitions or threatening phenomena.
Hattie's ghost is also documented in Mason Winfield's 'Supernatural Saratoga: Haunted Places and Famous Ghosts of the Spa City' (Arcadia Publishing, 2009, Haunted America series), which devotes a chapter to 'Hattie' as one of the 'Ghostly Ten' spirits of Saratoga Springs. Winfield, who compiled his research from the Saratoga Springs Public Library's 'great ghost file' and community interviews, describes the restaurant as active after Hattie Moseley Austin's death — a 'colorful woman' whose spirit is said to have 'had some kind of magic' and continued visiting her beloved establishment after her 1998 passing. This published regional account provides independent corroboration of the ghost-tour tradition.
Specific apparition details beyond the sensed-presence framing remain limited. The lore is one of benevolent continued presence rather than dramatic phenomena, and the restaurant itself does not market the paranormal angle. We treat this as a local-figure haunting tradition with sufficient independent documentation to publish alongside Saratoga's broader supernatural heritage.
Notable Entities
Hattie Moseley Austin
Media Appearances
- Haunted Saratoga Ghost Tours
Plan Your Visit
1 way to experienceSources & Further Reading
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hattie's Restaurant family-friendly?
Family-friendly Southern restaurant. Paranormal lore is gentle and respectful — Hattie herself, a beloved local figure, is the only entity reported. Overall family fit: High.
How much does it cost to visit Hattie's Restaurant?
Southern and Louisiana mains with shareable sides; full bar in adjacent space.
Do I need to book in advance?
No advance booking is required, but checking availability is recommended.
Is Hattie's Restaurant wheelchair accessible?
Yes, Hattie's Restaurant is wheelchair accessible. Terrain: Ground-floor restaurant; sidewalk entry..