S&S Cafeteria sets re-opening date for historic Macon location after fire, renovations
One of Macon’s longest running restaurants will reopen its doors this week after almost two years of renovations following a destructive fire.
The S&S Cafeteria location on Riverside Drive will reopen Friday, April 30, CEO Rick Pogue told The Telegraph on a tour Thursday. The restaurant was closed for 20 months and underwent major renovations following a fire in the restaurant in late September 2024. The Southern cafeteria-style chain Smith and Sons Foods Inc., more commonly known as S&S Cafeteria, plans to reopen its location at 2626 Riverside Drive in Macon with a complete renovation of its interior dining room and kitchen. “(The) inside had a complete loss from the fire,” Pogue said. “We have quite a few booths — we didn’t have booth seating before. Overall, it’s a lot more modern.”
The Sept. 30, 2024 fire did the most damage in the kitchen, and smoke and water from the fire department’s response caused more minor damage to the dining area, according to previous Telegraph reporting.
The new dining room features all black tables, chairs and booths and decorative wooden slabs on the ceiling. It seats 260 people, the same number from before the fire and renovations.
Pogue said they intend to hold onto the restaurant’s history even with the updates, including continuing to use their physical menu boards and offering the same Southern staples.
“The basic menus are the same recipes that have been handed down since we opened in 1936,” said Pogue. “Our number one seller is turnip greens, you can’t mess with turnip greens.”
S&S Cafeterias’ Riverside location is one of the oldest restaurants in Macon and originally opened in 1940, according to previous reporting from The Telegraph. The S&S Cafeterias brand will celebrate its 90th anniversary this year, after opening its first location in Columbus in 1936.
The Riverside location plans to reopen with its regular hours of 11 a.m. to 8 p.m on Friday in their dining room and take out area.