The Blue Willow Inn is about re-open.
That’s the word according to local businessman Andre Merkerson who said after a long delay the restaurant is scheduled to reopen in the early part of 2025.
In its heyday the Blue Willow Inn, located in a mansion on N. Cherokee Road in Social Circle, enjoyed a storied rise to national and even international popularity after it was opened by Louis and Billie Van Dyke in 1991.
The restaurant, which was given positive reviews by the late newspaper columnist Lewis Grizzard, has now been vacant since it was closed in March 2020 due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The location was first built in 1899 as a Victorian cottage by John Phillips Upshaw, Jr. on the 5-acre tract owned by his father. In 1917, the cottage was moved to its current location and converted into a Greek revival style.
Margaret Mitchell, author of “Gone with the Wind” has often been associated with this house though she never lived there. She was often a visitor while dating her Uncle John’s nephew, Redd Upshaw, to whom she was briefly married.
During the following years, the property was deeded to the city by Upshaw’s daughter for use as a community center and recreation facility which were eventually closed due to desegregation issues.
Louis and Billie Van Dyke named the restaurant after Billie’s favorite Blue Willow china pattern. It gained great popularity after a visit by well-known columnist Lewis Gizzard. His syndicated article about the restaurant’s warm hospitality and exceptional southern cuisine brought thousands of visitors and celebrities to Social Circle.
The financial challenges of the Great Recession in 2007-2008 placed the Van Dykes in bankruptcy followed sadly by the unexpected death of Louis in 2010. In 2011, under a plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the property was sold to a local real estate investor, Donald Poss, who operated the restaurant until its closure in 2020.
In 2022, the property was sold to Covington real estate investor Andre Merkerson and four partners from New York. Because of the substantial time lapse since the restaurant was closed, it is being extensively restored as a new restaurant subject to all prevailing state and local building and safety regulations.
Executive Chef Carmenia Morgan-Tyrus, selected to operate the restaurant, is very much involved with the reopening plans. A graduate of the Culinary Arts program from Gwinnett Technical College, she currently owns and operates the Musulyn's International Restaurant and Musulyn's Catering & Event Planning, LLC in Covington.
The Blue Willow will reopen as a planned destination restaurant, aiming to attract visitors from all over, not just the local area. The buffet-style restaurant will offer meats, seafood and typical southern style vegetables (including fried green tomatoes, greatly favored by Lewis Grizzard!) as well as a “touch” of international cuisine.
There will also be an a la carte menu that features food items that honor every southern state. For example, there might be Louisiana Jambalaya and gumbo, South Carolina shrimp and grits and low country boil, North Carolina style barbeque, Mississippi collard greens and fried pickles and more.
A coffee/gift shop is also planned, offering a variety of coffees, teas, and pastries. A bar for serving alcoholic beverages is scheduled to open later in the year.
The new Blue Willow Inn will be challenged to meet the high expectations that it will excel as the one-of-a-kind restaurant it once was. We wish Chef Carmenia all the best in achieving her goal to “bring the restaurant back, to elevate it, to make it even better and to make it into a destination again.”
Editor's Note: Madeline Burgess contributed information and history for this article.
