A seasonal shop on Central Avenue carries on a family tradition three generations in the making.
Greene’s Fine Foods, formerly known as Pecans Unlimited at 1704 Central Ave., is open from mid-October to Christmas Eve offering pecans and holiday treats as well as toys and other gifts.
The business traces its roots to the Greene family and a restaurant on East Boundary. It all started in the 1950s when Hugh Greene Sr. and his brother, Arthur, started Greene’s.
“Way back, it was a dairy,” said Jane Greene, whose husband, Hugh Greene Jr. started his journey into the food business there.
She has a framed copy of a full-page ad for the restaurant that ran in the Augusta Herald, which touted “Southern food; Southern hospitality; Southern atmosphere” at the restaurant.
[adrotate banner=”13″]
Hugh Greene Jr., who died in 2014, served as the restaurants manager. With his wife, Jane, they ventured into another food business in the 1980s after purchasing the Morrow’s Nut House franchise at Regency Mall in 1984. After several years, they remodeled the store and dropped their franchise affiliation, changing the name to Greene’s Goodies and Gifts.
In 1993, the couple left the mall and changed the business name once again to Pecans Unlimited, purchasing the building on Central Avenue in 2000 and running the seasonal pecans business.
They restored the former floral shop to its 1940s look.
[adrotate banner=”55″]
“How surprised we were to find beautiful hardwood floors under the glued-down carpet! Under one damaged floorboard was a newspaper with headlines, ‘Vote For Roosevelt,’” according to the business’s website.
When Hugh Greene Jr. died, Jane Greene closed the Central Avenue location for a few Christmases. By then, she’d moved to the Decatur area where her son, Phil, started Greene’s Fine Foods in the former post office.
Not only does the business sell mainly Georgia pecans, which come plain as well as chocolate-covered and praline, and are packaged in tins, but the Greenes got into toys after the toy store in Decatur closed, Jane Greene said.
The vintage toys plus some vintage candies are popular items, she said.
A piece of Augusta history headed to Decatur a few years ago when the Greene’s restaurant sign was taken to the store from the former restaurant location on East Boundary.
“My sons really wanted the sign,” she said even though the lettering is different from Greene’s Fine Foods current logo.
They purchased it from the building owner, refurbished it and placed it on the Decatur building.
Jane Greene said people will often stop in and tell them they recognize the art deco style lettering.
While the Decatur location is open year-round, the Augusta location will close its doors once again Christmas Eve with plans to return in October 2022.
To learn more about Greene’s Fine Foods, visit greenesfinefoods.com.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com .ustapress.com.
