Spoon’s

November 15, 2007 by enchantingsunshine.

Last Friday, my husband and I had lunch at Spoons, the barbecue place in Charlotte, and possibly all of the Southeast. I’m personally not a big fan of barbecue and truth be told, I’ll pick anything else on the menu besides the pork. The reason I love Spoons, besides the bottomless hush puppies and the bread pudding, is the old-fashioned, Southern customer service.

Spoon’s is a family-owned business and provides service from a bygone era. The wait-staff are attentive and warm. In an age where trust is a rare commodity, Bill Spoon, the owner, operated on the honesty policy. The restaurant doesn’t accept credit cards, but if you forgot to bring enough cash, Bill would say, “Don’t worry about it honey, just pay me next time you’re here.” Not just to customers he knew, but to everyone.

A few months ago Bill Spoon passed away. Even though I barely knew him personally, I felt so sad to hear the news. He was a bit of an icon here and the embodiment of the best things of a lost time.

Here’s a quote from Charlotte Magazine about him:

“This is another one of the romantic aspects of Bill Spoon’s barbecue; he rounds bills off in the interest of saving time. Spoon’s refusal to accept credit cards is more common, but while the average proprietor might position a blunt message beneath the register—’ATM next door,’ for example—Spoon is more forgiving. ‘We accept cash, checks, and promises,’ his notice reads. Bill Spoon takes I.O.Us, and letters from cash-less patrons hang on the bulletin board across from the front counter, thanking Spoon for his patience.”

Spoon’s family continues to operate the restaurant, but in August, the world lost a beautiful part of it’s past.

Here are two articles about him if you want to read more:
Charlotte Magazine
Obituary Charlotte Observer

Too bad we’re not passing a Bill Spoon kind of world on to future generations.

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