Wife of former Atlanta mayor remembers S&S Cafeteria: ‘A place you could see your friends’

Ira Joe Johnson, a civil rights leader, talks with Bunnie Jackson-Ransom, the first wife of the late Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson, on ways they might be able to help keep the S&S Cafeteria open. Johnson, who first started eating at the cafeteria more than 40 years ago when he was a student at Morehouse College, is confident they’ll succeed. “This time next week, you’ll hear news that S&S has committed to stay open until the end of the year,” he said. STEVE SCHAEFER / SPECIAL TO THE AJC

Ira Joe Johnson, a civil rights leader, talks with Bunnie Jackson-Ransom, the first wife of the late Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson, on ways they might be able to help keep the S&S Cafeteria open. Johnson, who first started eating at the cafeteria more than 40 years ago when he was a student at Morehouse College, is confident they’ll succeed. “This time next week, you’ll hear news that S&S has committed to stay open until the end of the year,” he said. STEVE SCHAEFER / SPECIAL TO THE AJC

Among those looking for a final meal at the dining institution in southwest Atlanta was Bunnie Jackson-Ransom, the first wife of the late Maynard Jackson, Atlanta’s first black mayor.

“It was a place you could see your friends,” said Jackson-Ransom, who helms public relations and marketing firm firstClass, Inc. “You never came without seeing your friends,” said Jackson-Ransom, who has met up with friends here for decades.

On Sunday, Jackson-Ransom ran into a college sorority sister. “She was getting pecan pie. I got chess pie and pecan pie. We piled our plates and talked about old times,” said Jackson-Ransom. “We love the food and camaraderie here.”

"What I am going to miss most of all is the crackin' cornbread. It was just good. So moist. The meal: seasoned and tasty, not dry."

Jackson-Ransom’s feelings about S&S are short and sweet: “It was special.”

RELATED:

Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook, following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter and @ajcdining on Instagram.