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Edna L. Stewart |
Asked what dishes she is known for, Edna Stewart doesn’t hesitate. “I make the best biscuits on earth,” she says. “And there’s the peach cobbler. And we do a beautiful fried pork chop. And Edna’s fried chicken. We also do a baked catfish. People want something that’s not greasy. Well, we don’t have greasy food. “A lot of people say it’s southern cooking,” she goes on. “I just say, basically, that my cooking is from the soul. I’ve been successful because I know how to cook. I can make dumplings that would make you cry.” Raised on the south side, Stewart became the cook in the west side restaurant her late father and now-ex husband started at Albany and Madison in 1966, half a block from the present, larger location, established in 1991. She is now the owner of Edna’s Restaurant, and her son is the manager. In the 60s, the place was unofficial headquarters for many civil rights workers, including staff members for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Her customers over the years have also included Jimmy Carter, Rosa Parks and John F. Kennedy Jr. And the hardest thing about running a restaurant? “Keeping the staff together, and having them understand that the customer is most important.” Stewart laughs. “You know, they’re always wrong, but you have to make them feel they’re right.” |