CHARLESTON — A West Ashley restaurant that community members cherished for its cozy experience and Southern comfort food will turn off its ovens for good after 12 years in business.
The Mason Jar by Fatboys, known for its fried chicken, seafood and barbecue, announced it will serve its last meal at the end of September. Laura Black, co-owner of the restaurant off Ashley River Road, wrote in a Facebook post that the decision arose from a shift in family priorities after her daughter was born.
“She needs us, and she deserves to have us there,” Black wrote. “Not just when we can squeeze it in around the restaurant. She deserves family dinners. Fun events. Vacations… and we want those things, too.”
A little over 12 years ago, both Black and co-owner Charles Lee lost their fathers a few months apart. Together, Black and Lee took what their parents left them and invested the money into opening The Mason Jar in 2014.
Black found all the furniture and decor, while Lee took care of the cooking equipment, Black said.
Together, they created a menu with recipes designed to “take you back to your grandma’s kitchen” and “fill your stomach but somehow fill your heart, too,” they said in the Facebook post.
Black wrote that she cried the first few months The Mason Jar was open because she couldn’t believe it was such a success.
“I was 27 years old and had so much to learn, but I was so incredibly proud of what we had created,” she wrote.
Black wrote that she cherished the customers and employees who, like family members, “celebrated with me, cried with me and (were) a constant in my life during times when my world outside of the restaurant felt like it was falling apart.”
Dining and Cooking