Broad Street in Augusta, Georgia is an urban kaleidoscope. Known as the spine of the city, the boulevard actually was 100 yards from side-to-side long ago. It still is broad, physically—about 50 yards across downtown. It also is broad culturally, considering the variety of enterprises that call it home. Art galleries and home décor boutiques share the street with strip clubs and pawn shops. For dinner, you can dine in high style on what is billed as chef-driven cuisine or chow down on chili dogs in a dive that warns against carrying concealed weapons.
A view of Broad Street
In the heart of it all, just up from the restored art deco Miller Theater, is Café 209, one of the city’s most inconspicuous eateries. Over the years, I breezed past it dozens of times without even noticing its existence. Then a while back I got a message from infallible tipster Keith McLendon, who said the modest lunchroom offers some of the best meat-and-two meals in town. He recommended smothered pork chops and noted that liver-and-onions is on the menu every day.
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