At Drexell & Honeybee’s in Brewton, Alabama, restaurant owners Freddie and Lisa Thomas-McMillan display classic Southern hospitality. With their business philosophy, “Feed the Need,” they operate on a donation-based system without turning anyone away reports Good News Network.
Guests from all walks of life can come in and enjoy southern cuisine served family style. After their meal, tucked in the corner of the mom and pop soul food establishment, is a donation box where guests can leave a donation that fits their needs. These donations go right back into running the restaurant meaning the owners get virtually no profit, says Black Business.
In a video by It’s a Southern Thing, Lisa explains that she learned the lesson of giving back to others as a young girl which has carried on into her adult life.
“We don’t have any suggested prices, everybody gets treated the same,” she said in the video. “If you go to the box and don’t have one red cent— no one will ever know. And we won’t care.”
Lisa says they don’t ask for work in exchange for food but they do accept volunteers. These volunteers work with them in the kitchen, take out the trash, sweep floors— and as of recently— donate protective equipment and gear for the restaurant to stay open amid new COVID-19 regulations.
They opened for a month in June as carryout only but closed due to “a shortage of volunteers” and the risk of exposing themselves to the virus, according to a post on their Facebook page.
In July, they returned to Facebook and put out a call for supplies to build a safety barrier so they would be able to reopen. Within hours, thanks to the community they serve, they are reopen for business.
To learn more about Drexell & Honeybee’s visit their website.
