Latest news with #Paula'sHomeCooking
Eater
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Eater
Paula Deen's Savannah Restaurants Shut Down Suddenly
is an editor of Eater's South region, covering Atlanta, Nashville, Miami, New Orleans, and the Carolinas. She has been writing about the food scene in the Carolinas and Savannah for 12 years. Erin has resided in Charleston, South Carolina, for the past 20 years. It's been some time since former Food Network star Paula Deen has been in the headlines, but on Friday, August 1, Deen announced that she and her sons were closing the Savannah flagship of the Lady & Sons and the Chicken Box. Deen wrote, 'Thank you for all the great memories and for your loyalty over the past 36 years. We have endless love and gratitude for every customer who has walked through our doors. We are equally grateful to our incredible staff—past and present—whose hard work, care, and hospitality made The Lady & Sons what it was.' The other outposts of the Lady & Sons will continue in Pigeon Forge, Myrtle Beach, Nashville, and Branson, Missouri. The Savannah location opened in 1996, following Deen's first restaurant, the Lady, and her catering business, the Bag Lady. Deen rose to fame with her Food Network show Paula's Home Cooking, which showcased Southern cooking with tons of butter and sugar. She drew controversy in 2012, when she announced that she had Type 2 diabetes and was teaming up with drug maker Novo Nordisk to promote a program called 'Diabetes in a New Light.' Many questioned if her food was to blame. In 2013, Deen was again in the spotlight when a former employee filed a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination and sexual harassment in Deen's restaurant, Uncle Bubba's Oyster House. During deposition, it came out that Deen used racial slurs. Food Network then decided not to renew her contract. According to a source interviewed by AP News, the Lady & Sons in Savannah was still a popular place for lunch, and the closure came as a surprise.
New York Post
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Paula Deen abruptly closes restaurant that launched her to Food Network fame
Former Food Network star Paula Deen announced Friday the abrupt closure of the Savannah restaurant that launched her to fame with its menu of fried chicken, banana pudding, and other indulgent Southern dishes. Deen ran The Lady & Sons restaurant with her two sons, Jamie and Bobby Deen, for nearly three decades. Loyal fans visiting Savannah continued to line up for Deen's buffet long after the Food Network canceled her show, 'Paula's Home Cooking,' in 2013. But 78-year-old Deen said Friday that The Lady & Sons closed for good along with The Chicken Box, which sold takeout lunches behind the main restaurant. Advertisement 5 Former Food Network star Paula Deen announced Friday the abrupt closure of the Savannah restaurant that launched her to fame. Andy Kropa /Invision/AP A statement posted on Deen's website and social media accounts didn't say why the restaurants had shut down. 'Hey, y'all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service for The Lady & Sons and The Chicken Box,' Deen's statement said. Advertisement 'Thank you for all the great memories and for your loyalty over the past 36 years,' she said. 'We have endless love and gratitude for every customer who has walked through our doors.' Deen said her four restaurants outside Savannah will remain open. They're located in Nashville and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Branson, Missouri. 5 Loyal fans visiting Savannah continued to line up for Deen's buffet long after the Food Network canceled her show, 'Paula's Home Cooking,' in 2013. AP Windows at The Lady & Sons were covered with brown paper on Friday. Signs posted at the front entrance read: 'It is with heavy hearts and tremendous gratitude that we announce that we have retired and closed.' Deen's restaurant seemed `packed' until it closed Advertisement Adrienne Morton and her family, visiting Savannah from Cincinnati, had made dinner reservations at Deen's restaurant for 5:45 p.m. Friday. Morton said she received a text message Friday morning saying her reservation had been canceled. 5 Windows at The Lady & Sons were covered with brown paper on Friday. Signs posted at the front entrance read: 'It is with heavy hearts and tremendous gratitude that we announce that we have retired and closed.' AP 'I thought this must be a mistake or maybe they planned to close and we don't live here and just weren't up to speed, but no,' Morton said. 'We wish them the best. Hopefully, everything turns out.' Advertisement Martin Rowe works in a downtown office across the street from Deen's restaurant. He said business seemed to be going strong up until it closed. 'Nobody knew anything was wrong,' Rowe said. 'I walk by there two or three times a week at lunch, and it was always packed.' Deen went from nearly broke to Food Network fame in Savannah 5 'Hey, y'all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service for The Lady & Sons and The Chicken Box,' Deen's statement said. AP Deen was divorced and nearly broke when she moved to Savannah with her boys in 1989 and started a catering business called The Bag Lady. She opened her first restaurant a few years later at a local Best Western hotel, then started The Lady & Sons in downtown Savannah in 1996. The restaurant soon had lines out the door and served roughly 1,100 diners per day at the height of Deen's popularity. A USA Today food critic awarded The Lady & Sons his 'meal of the year' in 1999. Deen moved her Savannah restaurant to a larger building near the following year after The Food Network debuted 'Paula's Home Cooking' in 2002. Filmed mostly in her home kitchen, Deen taped more than 200 episodes over the next decade. 5 Deen said her four restaurants outside Savannah will remain open, according to reports. Getty Images The Food Network canceled Deen's show in 2013 amid fallout from a lawsuit by a former employee. A transcript of Deen answering questions under oath in a legal deposition became public, which included Deen's awkward responses to questions about race. Advertisement Asked if she had ever used the N-word, Deen said, 'Yes, of course,' though she added: 'It's been a very long time.' Deen returned to television on ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars,' on chef Gordon Ramsay's Fox show 'MasterChef: Legends,' and on Fox Nation, which began streaming 'At Home With Paula Deen' in 2020. She also posts cooking videos to a YouTube channel that has more than 520,000 subscribers.
Los Angeles Times
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Paula Deen abruptly closes restaurant that launched her to celebrity chef status
In the late 1990s, Paula Deen was an independent restaurateur whose family-operated restaurant had just received a glowing review from USA Today. Her life and career were permanently changed. Now, over 25 years later, the Georgia native has announced the closing of the Lady and Sons — the iconic restaurant that made her a star of Southern cuisine and a household name in the cooking world. Opened in downtown Savannah, Ga., in 1996, the Lady and Sons boasted a menu of local classics like fried green tomatoes, banana pudding and hoecakes. The signature dish, Southern fried chicken, was enough to draw lines wrapping around the block — and the restaurant came to be viewed as an embodiment of the indulgent and buttery flavors that characterize Southern cooking. 'There in Savannah, Paula Deen's homestyle Southern menu at the Lady and Sons turned me into a ravenous beast, unmindful of manners, cholesterol, North-South diplomacy and the dropped jaws of my companions,' USA Today, then the nation's most-read daily newspaper, wrote on Dec. 17, 1999. Earlier that year, the popularity of the Lady and Sons caught the attention of Food Network journalist Gordon Elliott. Deen appeared on Elliott's short-lived show 'Door Knock Dinners' that led to her own Daytime Emmy-winning Food Network program, 'Paula's Home Cooking.' On her website and social media accounts, Deen bid farewell to the Lady and Sons and its longtime fans. Also closing is her newer restaurant, the Chicken Box, which opened in 2023. 'Hey, y'all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service for The Lady & Sons and The Chicken Box,' Deen said in the statement. 'We will now focus our attention on the four Paula Deen's Family Kitchen locations across the country.' The announcement came without warning, especially as the restaurant continued to draw tours and lines of customers. Three weeks prior to the announcement, the Lady and Sons posted on Instagram that it was hiring for all positions. Over the years, some of Deen's other restaurants have also closed suddenly. In 2014, employees at Uncle Bubba's Seafood and Oyster House — a Savannah eatery she co-owned with her brother, Earl W. 'Bubba' Hiers Jr. — reportedly arrived to work to find the doors locked and the appliances removed. A sign on the door said, 'Thank you for 10 great years. Uncle Bubba's is now closed.' The Panama City, Fla., location of Paula Deen's Family Kitchen also closed abruptly in 2019, laying off 30 employees without advance notice. Several former employees told local news channel WJHG that they were left without their main source of income following the closure. Uncle Bubba's closure came a year after controversy began to surround Deen after a former manager at the restaurant sued Hiers, alleging sexual and racial discrimination. Food Network canceled 'Paula's Home Cooking' after Deen admitted to using a racial slur during a deposition for the 2013 lawsuit. Lawyers asked Deen if she had ever used the N-word, to which Deen replied, 'Yes, of course,' later adding, 'It's been a very long time.' Since then, the 78-year-old has focused on her restaurants. The Lady and Sons, as her core establishment, was the result of a litany of personal struggles and ambition. Both of her parents passed away when she was in her early 20s and Deen, then a young mother, struggled with depression and agoraphobia, or fear of going outside. With only $200 left, Deen founded a catering company out of her kitchen called the Bag Lady. Her handmade bag lunches were delivered by her sons Jamie and Bobby and earned Deen a local reputation for her homestyle cooking. After one attempt at a restaurant, the Lady in 1991, the follow-up, the Lady and Sons, co-owned with Jamie and Bobby, would be her success.
Express Tribune
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Paula Deen shuts down 'The Lady & Sons' restaurant in Savannah After 36 years of operation
Celebrity chef Paula Deen has announced the sudden closure of her iconic Savannah restaurant, The Lady & Sons, along with her second local eatery, The Chicken Box. In a statement shared via her official website and social media on August 1, Deen, 78, confirmed that July 31 marked the final day of service for both restaurants. 'Hey, y'all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service,' Deen wrote. 'Thank you for all the great memories and for your loyalty over the past 36 years.' No reason was given for the closures. Deen opened The Lady & Sons in downtown Savannah in 1996 with her sons, Jamie and Bobby, after launching her food career in 1989 with a catering business called The Bag Lady. The restaurant, known for its Southern comfort food like fried chicken and banana pudding, quickly became a staple in the city's dining scene, drawing long lines of loyal fans and even earning USA Today's "Meal of the Year" in 1999. The Savannah location expanded following the success of her Food Network show Paula's Home Cooking, which began in 2002. However, Deen's television career was significantly impacted by a 2013 lawsuit that included allegations of racial and sexual harassment. Her admissions during a deposition led to the cancellation of her Food Network contracts. Despite the controversy, she maintained a strong fan base, transitioning to YouTube and other platforms. In her recent announcement, Deen emphasized gratitude toward customers and staff, stating, 'We are equally grateful to our incredible staff—past and present—whose hard work, care, and hospitality made the businesses what they were.' Though her Savannah restaurants are now closed, Deen confirmed that her four Paula Deen's Family Kitchen locations in Tennessee, South Carolina, and Missouri will remain open and continue operations.
Toronto Sun
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
Paula Deen has abruptly closed the Savannah restaurant that launched her to Food Network fame
Published Aug 01, 2025 • 2 minute read In this Feb. 13, 2015 file photo, Paula Deen attends the EVINE Live launch event at The Todd English Food Hall at The Plaza in New York. Photo by Andy Kropa / Andy Kropa /Invision/AP Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Former Food Network star Paula Deen announced Friday the abrupt closure of the Savannah restaurant that launched her to fame with its menu of fried chicken, banana pudding and other indulgent Southern dishes. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Deen ran The Lady & Sons restaurant with her two sons, Jamie and Bobby Deen, for nearly three decades. Loyal fans visiting Savannah continued to line up for Deen's buffet long after the Food Network cancelled her show, 'Paula's Home Cooking,' in 2013. But 78-year-old Deen said Friday that The Lady & Sons closed for good along with her second Savannah eatery, The Chicken Box. A statement posted on Deen's website and social media accounts didn't say why the restaurants had shut down. 'Hey, y'all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service for The Lady & Sons and The Chicken Box,' Deen's statement said. 'Thank you for all the great memories and for your loyalty over the past 36 years,' she said. 'We have endless love and gratitude for every customer who has walked through our doors.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Deen said her four restaurants outside Savannah will remain open. They're located in Nashville and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Branson, Missouri. Deen was divorced and nearly broke when she moved to Savannah with her boys in 1989 and started a catering business called The Bag Lady. She opened her first restaurant a few years later at a local Best Western hotel, then started The Lady & Sons in downtown Savannah in 1996. The restaurant soon had lines out the door and served roughly 1,100 diners per day at the height of Deen's popularity. A USA Today food critic awarded The Lady & Sons his 'meal of the year' in 1999. Deen moved her Savannah restaurant to a larger building nearby the year after The Food Network debuted 'Paula's Home Cooking' in 2002. Filmed mostly in her home kitchen, Deen taped more than 200 episodes over the next decade. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Food Network cancelled Deen's show in 2013 amid fallout from a lawsuit by a former employee. A transcript of Deen answering questions under oath in a legal deposition became public that included Deen's awkward responses to questions about race. Asked if she had ever used the N-word, Deen said, 'Yes, of course,' though she added: 'It's been a very long time.' Deen returned to television on ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars,' on chef Gordon Ramsay's Fox show 'MasterChef: Legends,' and on Fox Nation, which began streaming 'At Home With Paula Deen' in 2020. She also posts cooking videos to a YouTube channel that has more than 520,000 subscribers. Toronto & GTA Columnists Canada World Tennis
