Cafe At Pharr

Website: The Cafe at Pharr began and continues to function as a Mom ‘n’ Pop shop, serving hundreds of healthy Atlantans daily. For over a decade, Mike headed the kitchen, Shirley took care of the front end of the business, and customers constantly saw their children, Johnny and Jenny, lurking in the back, stuffing their faces with yogurt rolls and doing their best to help out, which usually meant staying out of the way. As they grew older, Johnny learned the ins and outs of baking bread and perfecting chicken salad recipes, as Jenny waitressed and bussed tables in the front.

Today, Cafe at Pharr is run by Mike and Shirley’s son Johnny, who has opened multiple locations around metro Atlanta and hopes to open more in the future. Jenny has since left Atlanta to pursue her doctorate in art history. Mike and Shirley have retired but still can be seen from time to time checking in on their son Johnny, at there flagship store on Pharr Road, making sure the Chicken Salad is always prepared like Mom ‘n’ Pop used to make it.