A Charleston shopping and dining tradition came to an end Tuesday as The China Cabinet Flowers and Gifts, and Just Lunch, closed after decades on West Main Street.
Throughout the day, well-wishers stopped by to greet the staff of three and to enjoy one final noontime meal at the casual soup, salad and sandwich shop.
“I couldn’t have done it without all of them,” said longtime business owner Eleanor Smith Worsham, wiping away a tear. “I’ve just met all kinds of nice people and made so many more friends.”
That makes her decision to retire and walk away from the retail establishment all the more difficult.
Then there is the sheer volume of 31 years of personal devotion to this place.
“It has just been my life,” Worsham noted. “You wake up with it on your mind, you go to sleep with it on your mind, wondering what you can do to make it better.”
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Worsham’s father built the original section of the building in the late 1940s. The space was rented out as two apartments.
“Members of my family, my brother and sister and I, all lived here at different times in one of the apartments,” she recalled.
Worsham later inherited the property following the death of her mother.
In her early career, she served 14 years as Charleston city clerk and then helped her husband, Gene, at his country store, Worsham’s Grocery, just east of Charleston.
In January 1986, utilizing one side, one apartment space, of the property at 311 West Main, Worsham opened a gift shop.
“It was a small shop,” she said. “We sold china and some small items. It was kind of a bridal registry shop.”
Her then 14-year-old daughter, Mandi, named the business The China Cabinet.
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In 1986, another opportunity came knocking.
In July, after tearing down a few walls, Worsham’s gift shop expanded into the rest of the building, which soon would tantalize with the aroma of fresh flowers.
“I don’t know. It just became available,” Worsham said, when asked why she delved into the flower business.
She purchased the inventory of a Charleston flower shop owned by Franklin West and, later, the stock of another owned by local florist Frances Lavender.
“Jane Carpenter worked for Mr. West and she came here and worked for a while with the flowers. Mrs. Lavender also worked here,” Worsham explained.
The China Cabinet, now featuring flowers and gifts, would operate without any major changes for another decade — except for the fact that Mandi became a full-time worker there in 1991.
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In 1996, Worsham’s husband sold his country store to retire. But when The China Cabinet built a large addition that stretched across the entire face of the building, those plans were interrupted.
“I decided we needed more display room, so that’s why we built on. But during the time we were building, people would ask me, ‘Are you building a tea room?’ I’d say no, but they kept asking. So Gene and I talked about it. He loved to cook and we just said we’d try it.”
“Just Lunch” was born.
Gene and new hire Mary Roussel manned the kitchen. Eventually, Mary moved on and Anita Sykes joined the cook staff on Aug. 6, 1998, and, like Mandi Worsham Brown, was there until the end.
The new addition featured more displays for gift offerings — Tyler Candles, Sheila Clark Pottery and Ole Miss and Mississippi State items were among the hottest sellers — but tables and chairs dominated the space.
“We bought and added more chairs. People bought chairs and donated tables and chairs and let us use them,” said Worsham.
Just Lunch, which served meals from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. five days a week, could accommodate more than 60 diners in three seating areas.
“From the start, we had soups, salads and sandwiches, and the menu has pretty much stayed the same,” said Worsham. “The biggest seller was homemade chicken salad that Gene made himself. It was his recipe.”
Brownie ala mode and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies also were big hits.
People flocked in “from just about everywhere,” said Worsham. “Morgan Freeman used to come here. He loved to talk to Gene.”
Gene died in March 2004, but despite the great void he left, the business carried on.
Over the years, Just Lunch has hosted countless birthday and retirement parties, bridal showers, class reunions and family gatherings.
All the while, gifts were sold and flowers were prepared for funerals and Valentine’s Day and other special occasions. The shop even dabbled in tanning beds.
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The economy and online shopping have hurt shops like hers, noted Worsham, 78. As has time, she added.
“It’s just time for me to leave,” she said. “I’m old and tired and ready to sit back and enjoy life and my two grandchildren. But I will miss this for a long, long time. It’s like a death.”
Worsham has tried to sell the business, hoping someone would be able to carry on the tradition.
“I don’t know what’s going to be the final outcome. I have people who are interested,” she said.
IN THE PHOTO: Eleanor Worsham (front) is pictured with her daughter, Mandi Brown (left), and Anita Sykes Tuesday morning at The China Cabinet. (Photo by Clay McFerrin)
