Granddaddy’s Skillet closed
Updated: Granddaddy’s Skillet, the soul food restaurant in Pinecrest Plaza, permanently closed on May 14.
A recorded phone message says, “We are working very hard on reopening in a new location.”
Roxanne and Andre David opened Granddaddy’s Skillet in early 2021 at 6544 Little River Turnpike.
The Davids want to stay in the Annandale/Mason District area and are looking for vacant properties, Roxanne says. They would also consider cooking their food at the new restaurant, a sandwich shop, expected to open in their former space.
“People loved the food,” Roxanne (Miss D) says. “They miss our cooking.” She anticipates loyal customers will follow them wherever they end up.
The pandemic has been hard for Granddaddy’s Skillet. “We were doing volume; we just weren’t doing enough volume,” Roxanne says.
They weren’t able to keep up when the rent was increased. “We owed some back rent. We didn’t want that to escalate,” she says. When Edens offered them an early termination of the lease, they took it.
Roxanne was the longtime food services manager at Poe Middle School. It was her lifelong dream to open a restaurant in honor of her grandfather, Percy Ledbetter, who operated Percy’s Seafood Restaurant in Pittsburgh.
Sad to see. Amazing food and kind staff. I hope they’ll find a new location that can get them the attention they deserve. This customer will follow.
Way over priced
That’s sad. But there’s really no $ in restaurants. Razor thin margins during normal times. Normal times are gone for the foreseeable future.
Granddaddy would be proud that you tried.
I loved their food. I hope they can find a new place.
This is sad to see Grandaddy’s Skillet close. The catfish was the best! And the service was always so cheerful. High rent increases when leases are renewed is often the reason why businesses cannot continue to operate.
They should try a food truck and do different site locations and post it on Facebook, Twitter, etc. as to where they will be. This will keep rent/lease down, share their food over different locations in Northern Virginia, make a profit and keep within a safe profit/fail margin to begin with. Good Luck.
welp
that didnt last long.
Maybe if their online ordering worked they could’ve lasted. We tried twice, months apart, and it didn’t work – including once when it confirmed the order; but we showed up and was advised there was no order.
Thank you for so many amazing meals and even to include an impromptu birthday serenade I received from your team and customers that is now a forever memory for me. Shoot. Prayers that a new Grand Daddy’s Skillet chapter comes our way! Thank you for being the best.
I hope they find a new home as well. A food truck would be a great idea for now and yes they definitely need to improve their online ordering. They should also get on Door Dash and the other food delivery services. Start a GoFundMe, I’d contribute! Good Luck GDS, come back SOON!