The So-Kitch is going down. This is a shame.
I am not going to wax nostalgic that this joint had the greatest food I've ever eaten, but what it offered was honest food; not the pre-fab, corporate, faceless and tasteless fare served at your local anonymous chain. For me, there was no better late-night breakfast for the hungry musician.
"Marvelous" Marvin, a character worthy of John Waters or This American Life, served up the food always with a side of hilarious wit and observation of the human condition. Particularly the condition of the post bar crowd, who despite their occasional rowdiness, were always welcome.
Let's face it: it's a Charlestonian institution and worth saving.
Everyone in C-Town has eaten there regardless of their social status. From Byrd to Kerry, even politicos made hay from eating there. Everyone was equal at the table. That's what was cool. Now, that's coming to an end.
Questions abound: why did Miss Hersman leave it to her daughter who clearly had/has no interest in keeping it going? Why didn't she leave it to her sister instead? Why not sell it to someone who can keep it open?
Less than a month after her death, this reads a bit callous:
"Hersman’s sister, Freda Morton, who has been managing the restaurant since her sister died, said her daughter, Texas resident Patricia Ranson, inherited the business. She told her mother to tell employees the restaurant will close Oct. 15."
Maybe the call, no doubt left on an answering machine, went something like this:
"Hey ya'll. This is Patty. How y'all doin'? Well, just wanted to say that I've decided to close the restaurant down. Know it's got a lot of history and some people have put in fourty-four years and all, but hell, I live in Texas. Tell everybody I'm sorry. And have a nice Christmas."
It's funny. This passage from Eliot really had me going this week:
"Men and bits of paper, whirled by the cold wind,
That blows before and after time"
Time before and time after. Always, always that way.
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