“This is the best pimento cheese I’ve ever had,” declares a Georgia native, swiping a popover through a smear of zingy orange paste. In an improbable farmhouse-style room in the South End, festooned with antique lamps and vibrating with classic rock, chef Jason Cheek (Coppa, Toro) pays homage to his North Carolina childhood. His food makes even hardened Northerners swoon: smoky shrimp and grits, airy little biscuits rich with buttermilk, and greaseless heaps of tangy fried chicken, all enlivened by stiff rye cocktails and a happy staff.