SAN ANTONIO – Mr. & Mrs. G’s, the iconic East Side restaurant she founded with her husband nearly three decades ago, was closed Thursday for Addie Garner’s funeral.
She was 82.
People who knew and loved her filled the sanctuary of Second Baptist Church to pay their respects to her family.
“This is what she would have wanted, for people to gather and remember her in a good way,” her son, Kenyon Ford, said.
William Garner, her husband of 31 years, said they viewed their restaurant “as a business, of course, but more of a service.”
Their restaurant opened in 1990 in the 2200 block of South W.W. White Road and “was built on a strong foundation,” said Deborah Thomas, Mr. and Mrs. G’s daughter.
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“Once you have a strong foundation, you continue to build on it,” Thomas said.
Known for its tempting comfort food, the front of the restaurant boasts: From New York to New Orleans, taste the best homemade soul food.
The restaurant was featured in KSAT 12’s first Flavor Fav based on viewer recommendations.
Dimitria Ford said her grandmother was known for her secret ingredient.
“Love, love, she loved cooking and she really loved people,” Dimitria Ford said.
Mr. G said he and his wife loved making people happy. Their son said his mother also was known for generosity.
“She gave. She gave. She gave,” he said, such as donating Bibles and hymnals.
Her daughter said that’s why the wreath on the restaurant door, reads simply, “Mom.”
“She was the mother of the community. She gave whatever was asked of her. She’d do it without hesitation,” Thomas said.
Deborah Ford said she and her father will re-open the restaurant Friday at 11 a.m., because it’s what she would have wanted.