The Mockingbird Cafe Sings it’s Swan Song

I leaked the beauty shop rumor the Mockingbird was closing to the certain members of the media months ago. It’s offical and tonight is it. The Seacoast Echo has the story:

Old Towne Bay St. Louis was rocked Tuesday as word spread of Mocking-bird Cafe’s closure this Friday. The unique cafe — owned by Alicein and Martin Chambers— became a staple for many the two years it has been open with the sandwiches, locally brewed beer, live music and poetry readings.

“Financially we couldn’t afford to keep it, we have put everything we had into it,” said Mockingbird co-owner Martin Chambers.

Chambers said the decision to close was made Monday and his phone hasn’t stopped ringing since. Some, he said, have even called with offers of fund-raising to keep the quirky cafe open.
But, Chambers said, he and Alicein, are definitely closing the doors to Mockingbird and will go back to “leading a normal life.”

“It’s very sad and unexpected,” said Dwight Isaacs, owner of Shabby Chic Designs on Main Street, adding, “I see more of it coming if more people don’t start supporting Old Towne.”
Chambers agreed, “We don’t have the draw like Ocean Springs gets, we keep losing businesses and we can’t hold the anchor all the time.”

Exhaustion, 16-hour days — which keep them away from their two-year-old son — and a struggling economy were some of the reasons Chambers cited for the closure.

“I don’t think any of us realized after the storm that insurance was going to be so high … our insurance is $28,000 a year now … how much coffee do you need to sell for that alone?” he said.