Ep 32: Black-Owned Diner Survives 50+ Years in South Central LA: Meet the Woman in Charge!
08/01/23 • 43 min
Jack Davenport opened a diner in south-central Los Angeles specializing in home-style soul food back in 1969 near the intersection of Western Ave. and what is today, Martin Luther King Blvd.
Because he wanted to make it a family business, he named the diner Jack's Family Kitchen.
Well, life throws you curves, and Jack's marriage didn't work out. Luckily for him, a woman named LaFay owned a hair salon right around the corner from Jack's, and he spent the next ten years pursuing her. Fay finally said yes but kept her business and built it into the largest hair salon in Los Angeles with a fancy Wilshire Ave. address.
After Jack passed away in 2012 (and thirty years of marriage to Fay), Fay honored Jack's wishes to keep the popular diner open at all costs--and it hasn't always been easy.
Fay, who is coming up on her 80th birthday, offers her thoughts and insights on a host of topics including:
*Working hard to keep the doors open for the benefit of employees, their families, and the south-central community as a whole.
* Race relations in America.
*Reparations.
*Bad hair.
*A rooster-crowing customer who's in love with her.
*Personal responsibility.
*Her relationship with God.
*Her hope for Jack's and the south-central L.A. community.
I think you'll find Fay Davenport a breath of fresh air; a woman with valuable life experience and a healthy dose of postive-can-do-it attitude.
Diner Info:
Jack's Family Kitchen
3965 S. Western Ave.
Los Angeles, CA. 90062
323-296-5215
www.jacksfamilykitchen.com
Jack Davenport opened a diner in south-central Los Angeles specializing in home-style soul food back in 1969 near the intersection of Western Ave. and what is today, Martin Luther King Blvd.
Because he wanted to make it a family business, he named the diner Jack's Family Kitchen.
Well, life throws you curves, and Jack's marriage didn't work out. Luckily for him, a woman named LaFay owned a hair salon right around the corner from Jack's, and he spent the next ten years pursuing her. Fay finally said yes but kept her business and built it into the largest hair salon in Los Angeles with a fancy Wilshire Ave. address.
After Jack passed away in 2012 (and thirty years of marriage to Fay), Fay honored Jack's wishes to keep the popular diner open at all costs--and it hasn't always been easy.
Fay, who is coming up on her 80th birthday, offers her thoughts and insights on a host of topics including:
*Working hard to keep the doors open for the benefit of employees, their families, and the south-central community as a whole.
* Race relations in America.
*Reparations.
*Bad hair.
*A rooster-crowing customer who's in love with her.
*Personal responsibility.
*Her relationship with God.
*Her hope for Jack's and the south-central L.A. community.
I think you'll find Fay Davenport a breath of fresh air; a woman with valuable life experience and a healthy dose of postive-can-do-it attitude.
Diner Info:
Jack's Family Kitchen
3965 S. Western Ave.
Los Angeles, CA. 90062
323-296-5215
www.jacksfamilykitchen.com
Previous Episode
Ep 31: Diary of a Midwife: Babies, Reproductive Rights & Subpar Healthcare for Women
My father-in-law, Marvin, suggested I do a podcast from a deli in L.A. close to where he grew up. It's called Factors Famous Deli which has been around since 1948!
I saw a woman sitting in a booth wearing scrubs and assumed she was a medical professional, but I had no idea she was a licensed nurse midwife. I wasn't even really aware that midwives were still a thing--my kids were born via C-section with my wife's gynecologist doing the procedure.
The midwife's name is Kerin, and she's been doing it for over twenty years. We get into birthing babies at home in bed, in blow-up pools, and toilet births--you name it! She also discusses how the United States is NOT the best in the world in regard to women's overall healthcare and low infant mortality rates. Kind of shocking considering we have some of the most expensive health care costs in the world.
Kerin also has strong opinions on other issues including reproductive rights, the impact of the reversal of Roe v. Wade, and the ongoing learning curve that is gender/sex identity for newborns.
Thanks for giving this episode a listen.
Factors Famous Deli
9420 W. Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, Ca. 90035
(310) 278-9175
www.factorsdeli.com
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