Popular Middle GA lunch spot reopens after shutting down during COVID-19 pandemic

A popular lunch spot known for its Southern comfort food is reopening after shuttering for more than a year-and-a-half due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gigi’s Comfort Food at 103 Manor Court in Warner Robins is expected to resume regular business hours Thursday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays.

“This is something I’ve always wanted to do,” said owner Debbie Boyd. “For about 30 years, I knew I wanted to open my own restaurant. I just love cooking.”

With the help of her fiance, David Smith, Boyd opened the small restaurant near Commercial Circle in June 2019.

“I’m just the supporting cast,” Smith said. “I fill in where I’m needed.”

The restaurant, close to city hall and not far from Robins Air Force Base, quickly became a local favorite. But in March 2020, Boyd, a licensed practical nurse, decided to temporarily close because of the pandemic.

With little known about COVID-19 at that time, she said she wanted to protect her customers and her staff.

“I think it’s something we’re learning to live with,” Boyd said of COVID-19.

Home cooking

The small restaurant capable of seating up to 30 people offers a home-cooked meal. Customers may choose from two meat options, several sides and cornbread or dinner rolls from a rotating menu.

Options include fried chicken, fried pork chops, meatloaf, spaghetti and fried catfish. Sides include turnip greens, steamed cabbage, baby lima beans, macaroni and cheese, black eyed peas and more.

She also offers hamburgers, sandwiches, salads and specialty dishes. Customer favorites include the pepper steak, egg rolls and curry chicken.

“I make them fresh every day,” Boyd said.

Her cooking skills have been passed down through the generations. Her great grandmother, grandmother, mother and other family members have all cooked in restaurants. She also worked in a restaurant back in her hometown of Columbus, Mississippi, called The Little Kitchen.

Boyd has decided to lay down her nursing jobs to pursue her restaurant full-time.

She also wanted to have time for volunteer work.

The restaurant is only open for lunch and is closed on Saturday and Sundays.

Boyd arrives at 6 a.m. to start cooking. She has a small staff to help her, and they also do the cleanup. She usually ends her work day about 5 p.m.

All in a name

Boyd’s “grandbabies” call her Gigi, a nickname one of her sons decided best suited her, she said.

“You don’t look like a grandma, so we’re going to call you, Gigi,” Boyd said her son, Tavaris Boyd, told her.

The nickname stuck and seemed ideal for her restaurant, Debbie Boyd said.

Boyd said she chose comfort food as opposed to soul food in the name because she believes comfort best describes the type of food she serves up.

“It’s meatloaf like your mother made,” she said.

And as a nurse, Boyd is all about providing comfort, Smith added.

The restaurant offers dine-in and takeout.

This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 8:10 AM.