The Coffee Cup was a long-standing Charlotte eatery that opened in 1947 at 914 South Clarkson Street. It operated for 62 years before it closed in 2008 and was torn down in 2009. The Coffee Cup was a beloved restaurant where everyone was welcome to dine, and as a result it became a symbol of communication across the boundaries of race and class.
The Coffee Cup, known early on as the Coffee Cup Soda Grill, was originally called Withers Sandwich Shop. Its first owner, Withers Turner, opened the restaurant in 1947. Withers Sandwich Shop was located in Charlotte’s central business district and was an example of a roadside food stand. Roadside food stands became popular in cities with the advent of cars and the growth of industry. The restaurant was surrounded by distribution warehouses and manufacturing plants like Akers Motor Lines, Associated Transport Motor Freight Lines, and Charlotte Pipe and Foundry Company, which provided customers.
The restaurant appealed to the workers in the business district because its menu was limited, the prices moderate, and the service quick. In its earliest days, it served ten-cent hamburgers and hot dogs, ham and grilled cheese sandwiches for 15 cents, T-bone steaks with fries and a salad for $1.25, and later added breakfast.
After many people came for good coffee, Withers’s daughter suggested naming it the Coffee Cup restaurant. In the mid-1950s, Withers sold the restaurant to Myrtle Heath, a Black woman. Heath immediately boarded up the take-out window, which was historically the only way black patrons could be served. The Coffee Cup now served both Black and white patrons inside and was one of the first integrated restaurants in Charlotte.
Myrtle Heath embraced racial diversity, which was uncommon in Charlotte at the time. In 1981, Heath’s niece, Chris Crawford, a server at the Coffee Cup, and Mary Lou Maynor, another server, pooled their savings to buy the restaurant. The Coffee Cup became a symbol of racial harmony, as it was common to see from 1980s onward mixed groups of Blacks and whites, men and women, dining together.
The Coffee Cup was also a place where blue-collar workers from the surrounding warehouse district and executives sat shoulder to shoulder, enjoying soul food. It transcended race and class, where people could come and have great meals like meatloaf, ribs, fried chicken, and biscuits.
Mary Lou Maynor passed away five years after purchasing the restaurant with Crawford. Crawford continued to run the restaurant until 1998 when she sold it. The most recent owners of the Coffee Cup were Gardine Wilson and Anthony McCarver. They purchased the restaurant in 2003. The duo ran the Coffee Cup in its original location until they closed it in 2008.
One of the Coffee Cup’s most notable patrons was Joe Martin, a Bank of America executive. He frequented the restaurant and was a major advocate for acceptance, tolerance, and diversity. He was forced to retire from Bank of America in 2001 because he was diagnosed with ALS. Martin had his retirement lunch at the Coffee Cup.
In 2005, Beazer Homes USA, an Atlanta-based company, purchased the property surrounding the Coffee Cup. The land was desirable as it was within walking distance of Bank of America Stadium and the rest of Uptown. Beazer had plans to turn the property into a multi-family community. Even though the Coffee Cup’s owners had the support of the Historic Landmark Commission, the City Council, and the public, the owners were forced to leave the original location of the Coffee Cup in the summer of 2007. Like many housing companies, Beazer was hit hard by the 2008 housing market crash, and their Charlotte plans fell through in 2008. The building was torn down in 2009.
Upon leaving the original location on Clarkson Street in 2007, Wilson and McCarver tried to keep the Coffee Cup going in two different locations: one in Uptown and one in University City. However, they were unable to get the necessary traction to keep the other new locations open, and all Coffee Cup locations were closed by 2008.
Gardine Wilson is looking to make a comeback with the Coffee Cup. He hopes to bring back some of the cooks and staff from the original location. He wants to keep it authentic by serving some old favorites like salmon and biscuits, country-style steak, and pan-fried chicken while adding healthier options. The Coffee Cup was a very bright spot in the tapestry of Charlotte’s history. As former city councilman Malachi Green pointed out the Coffee Cup was a place where “the big dogs rub shoulders and sat down and ate beside little dogs.” It was a place where “everyone was served the same food by the same people and talked to the same way by the people that were serving them.”
