Ms. Joyce, as many call her, was forced to close her business Tuesday, January 17, 2010 because of the slow economy. Having been in business in Fuquay Varina since 1997, she was deeply saddened to close the business that she so dearly loved. Many of her family members also worked at the restaurant and they would be losing their jobs as well. It all seemed hopeless for everyone until the next day when she received the surprise of her life. Members of her family secretly worked together to pool their money from tax returns, savings and loans to give to Joyce to open her restaurant again. They told her they were willing to work long hours and take a pay cuts to help keep the restaurant open. Joyce said she had been praying about what the Lord wanted her to do and she told him, “ I will do whatever you want me to do, just lead me.” When her family presented this gift to her she felt her prayer had been answered. Joyce calls this her “Family Stimulus Plan!” She feels so blessed to have the support and love of such a wonderful family and community.
The sense of community she feels in downtown Fuquay is important to her. She sends people who come in her restaurant looking for a chicken salad sandwich to Elliott’s or if they want bread, cookies, cinnamon rolls or other treats, she sends them to Stick Boy Bread Company next door. “We all work together to help each other succeed,” says Joyce. On Sundays at lunch after church, Joyce greets a group of regulars from Piney Grove Baptist Church each week. They know she doesn’t get to attend her church that morning because she is preparing lunch, so they bring a recording of the Sunday School lesson and the sermon for her to listen to. She calls this “kind and thoughtful.”
Mealtime at Joyce’s brings together people from all walks of life. You may be sitting next to a professor from a town over, the banker down the street, the mayor, the lucky retirees that gather for coffee and conversation or ladies having a day out together. It’s a good way to catch up on what is happening in town. So many folks in the area asked her to start serving breakfast, that now she sets her alarm clock, “very early”, and gets busy in the kitchen. She keeps the tradition of “homemade food” alive in Fuquay Varina with lunch and dinner favorites of fried chicken, chicken pastry or dumplings as many of us say, macaroni and cheese, pork chops and gravy, mashed potatoes, cabbage, hushpuppies, biscuits and cakes that melt in your mouth for dessert. Call her ahead a day or so and she might even make you a banana pudding! Many people relate the food to their grandmother’s cooking on Sunday’s. That statement probably says it all!
Joyce & Family Restaurant is open for breakfast Tuesday-Friday 5:30-10:00 and Saturday 6:00-10:00. Lunch and dinner are served Tuesday-Saturday 11:00-8:00 and Sunday 11:00-5:00. Call for take-outs at 919-567-1717.
Post a Comment
