Saxapahaw, North Carolina, is a former mill town with a rich history. Through the years, native tribes and explorers, new immigrants and new technology have come to its river banks. In 1994, after nearly 150 years in operation, the Saxapahaw Cotton Mill closed, but cultural revitalization continued.
The hub of this 1,800-strong community is the Saxapahaw General Store. This is where many locals begin and end their day, thanks to the welcoming atmosphere that owners Jeff Barney and Cameron Ratliff have created—not to mention their destination-worthy menu.
Many locals begin and end their day at the Saxapahaw General Store.
Humble Beginnings
When Jeff and his wife Cameron purchased the store 10 years ago, they didn’t just have to clean it: They had to reinvent it. “It was an outpost with no women or children,” Barney recalled. “It smelled bad. There was a hot roller and a pre-fab fry machine. The shelves were dusty and low-slung.” The store had gas pumps but was suffering from its isolated location. “Gas is a draw, except it doesn’t work in the middle of nowhere,” Barney explained.
But Barney knew the store had significant potential to be a community gathering place and hoped to participate in the new and growing local economy that favored small businesses. “If you want sustainability and renewability, it starts with human relationships,” he said.
So, the couple rebranded the gas “Saxaco” and began making other improvements. The store got an updated look, new shelves and a carefully curated selection of products. As families moved into town, the store added groceries, with an emphasis on fresh foods and artisan goods. In time, it was offering craft beer, a more sophisticated wine selection and locally produced cheese.
Barney knew a fresh approach to foodservice would get a lot of attention, too, so he set upon creating an ambitious new menu. Today, with its extensive breakfast, lunch and dinner offerings, Saxapahaw General Store gives customers options ranging from a quick bite to a full meal.
Healthy and Local
Customers’ health is top of mind for Barney and Ratliff. “Increasingly, people have food allergies,” Barney said. “I have kids and … I want them to be able to eat here every day. That means clean food, not genetically modified.”
Whenever possible, the groceries and food prepared at the store are grown and raised in the community. “You know your farmer; you know where your milk comes from,” Barney said. “We take a mission-driven company approach with a deep commitment to supporting the local economy and farmers [and] recirculate the dollar in the community.”
Breakfast during the week draws traffic, but it’s the weekend brunch that “kills it,” according to Barney. The Breakfast Burrito—ham, sausage or bacon and a scrambled egg served in a flour tortilla with home fries, salsa and avocado—“uses local eggs,” he said. “I can almost see the guy’s farm from here.”
The breakfast menu—available until 2:00 pm—also includes biscuits with sausage gravy, build-your-own omelets and a variety of meat-and-egg sandwiches. Breads and pastries are either made by Ratliff, a self-taught biscuit maker, or sourced locally from the Saxapahaw Village Bakehouse.
If you want sustainability and renewability, it starts with human relationships.
For lunch and dinner, Barney has created some out-of-the-box burgers. He calls the Goat Burger “peasant food with a Moroccan influence.” It’s made with ground goat meat, Spanish cheese, caramelized roasted tomatoes and an olive tapenade on an English muffin, with lemon garlic aioli, coriander and black pepper.
Some of Barney’s customers follow gluten-free diets. “I got the Emu Burger because of a customer who comes three times a day,” he said. “There’s a fellow here who makes an Eastern European-style, gluten-free bread, so it holds together.” Additional gluten-free menu items include pizza, a duck salad and a pan-seared fish du jour.
Vegetarians and vegans can eat well, too, with tasty options such as the “Avocadomater” sandwich, portobello wrap and red beans and rice.
All-Inclusive
While Barney is committed to healthy fare, he knows it’s not for everyone. One unapologetically indulgent menu item is the duck fat fries. “We do 400 to 800 pounds of potatoes a week,” Barney said.
On the shelves, “We have Little Debbie Cakes next to the organic rice cakes, and Beanie Weenies next to the wild-caught canned salmon,” Barney said. “That’s the ethos of the store—it’s about choice,” he said. “We didn’t want to alienate the c-store customers.”
Barney’s vision for a welcoming village gathering spot has been realized: The store has become a community destination. Customers from varied backgrounds, with different preferences for food, groceries and convenience items, all have found a home here. “We get people together who would not normally get together,” he said.