AUSTIN — The owner of an East Austin restaurant was caught by surprise Saturday when hundreds of people showed up throughout the day to offer their support, days after the owner declined an offer to move.
Brian Mays, the owner of Sam's Bar-B-Que off of East 12th Street, told KVUE he declined a $3.5 million offer from a developer to pack up and go earlier in the week.
To show their appreciation, customers -- both new and old -- lined up outside the restaurant to order some of Mays' best barbecue. Mays was surprised, to say the least.
"This here has beat it all. This here beat SXSW and everything else," he said. "It almost brought tears to my eyes. I didn't know this many people really loved me and they love my barbecue."
Bridget Tobin, a first-time customer, said she's seen a lot of changes in the city throughout the years. She doesn't want the area to lose another local business to a developer with money.
"I really don't want more of our local businesses to keep having to leave because of the new businesses and the new kind of money that's coming in, especially on this side of town," she said. "I just think it's really important to try to promote them and give them business."
Edward Abrams -- a first-time customer who moved from Oakland, California, to Austin about 10 years ago -- told KVUE he witnessed gentrification in his hometown, too.
"When you have a black business, normally, whether it's a restaurant or whatever, you're talking about jobs. You're talking about living. You're talking about community, people who have grown up here and accustomed to the neighbors," he said. "And you just have people moving in and just disrupting."
Mays, whose grandfather Sam founded the restaurant more than 60 years ago, said he doesn't plan to go anywhere anytime soon.
"I'll make sure you got good barbecue where you don't need no teeth to eat my beef, baby," he said.