Paula Deen closes flagship Savannah restaurant that helped launch her to fame

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Paula Deen, former Food Network star and Southern cooking icon, is pictured at a furniture launch event. Deen recently announced the sudden closure of her flagship Savannah restaurant, The Lady & Sons, which first opened in 1996. (Photo by Aaron Davidson/Getty Images)

One of Savannah’s most famous tourist stops and a key part of Paula Deen’s rise to fame is no longer serving Southern cooking.

Deen announced Friday that she and her sons, Jamie and Bobby Deen, had made the "heartfelt decision" to close The Lady & Sons — the restaurant they opened in downtown Savannah in 1996 — along with an adjacent takeout stand called The Chicken Box. The closures took place quietly at the end of service on July 31. No reason was given.

"Thank you for all the great memories and for your loyalty over the past 36 years," Deen said in a statement posted to her website and social media. "We have endless love and gratitude for every customer who has walked through our doors."

The backstory:

The Lady & Sons began as a small catering venture called The Bag Lady in the early 1990s, when Deen was recently divorced and struggling financially. After years of hustling and home-cooked meals delivered by her sons, she opened her first brick-and-mortar location at a Savannah hotel, eventually relocating to downtown in 1996.

The restaurant’s buffet-style Southern menu — including fried chicken, collard greens, and banana pudding — attracted lines of tourists and locals. At its peak, the restaurant served over 1,000 guests a day and received national recognition, including a 1999 "meal of the year" nod from USA Today.

Deen’s national stardom took off after "Paula’s Home Cooking" debuted on the Food Network in 2002. Filmed largely in her home kitchen, the show ran for over a decade.

How the community responded

Local perspective:

For many Savannah visitors, a reservation at The Lady & Sons was a must.

Adrienne Morton, who had dinner plans there with her family during a trip from Cincinnati, told the Associated Press she received a cancellation notice the morning of their reservation.

"I thought this must be a mistake," Morton said. "We wish them the best. Hopefully everything turns out."

Martin Rowe, who works across the street from the restaurant, said it never appeared to be struggling.

"Nobody knew anything was wrong," Rowe told the AP. "I walk by there two or three times a week at lunch, and it was always packed."

On Friday, brown paper covered the windows of the closed restaurant, and signs posted at the entrance read: "It is with heavy hearts and tremendous gratitude that we announce that we have retired and closed."

What's next:

Though the Savannah location was her most famous, Deen still owns four other restaurants that remain open: in Nashville and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Branson, Missouri.

She also maintains an active media presence. In recent years, Deen has appeared on "Dancing With the Stars," Fox’s "MasterChef: Legends," and Fox Nation’s "At Home With Paula Deen." Her YouTube channel has more than 520,000 subscribers.

The Lady & Sons may be gone, but Deen’s brand — built on comfort food and a comeback story — still has a loyal following.