The property of 408 West Rosemary Street in Chapel Hill, home to the Mama Dip’s restaurant, is for sale — but that doesn’t mean the end of the family-owned business.
A listing for the 0.68 acre lot and the 4,226 square foot building was posted last week by Mama Dip’s Properties LLC with the asking price of $3.6 million. The “negotiable” inclusion of the restaurant’s commercial equipment in the listing led to questions of the restaurant’s future, especially since no word was shared on the Mama Dip’s website.
But according to Anita “Spring” Council, one of the eight children of Mildred Council and owners of their mother’s restaurant, the family is seeking a sale to launch Mama Dip’s into a new chapter. In a phone interview with Chapelboro, Council said she and her siblings had challenging conversations a few months ago about the direction of the restaurant industry and their plans for retirement. The result was concluding that Mama Dip’s will take a new approach — eventually.
“We will not close the restaurant until the property is sold — and of course, we don’t know when that will be,” said Council. “We have two things: the property and the brand, and we want to keep Mama’s legacy going.”
A screenshot of the property listing for 408 West Rosemary Street on LoopNet.
Mildred Council sits on the porch of the Mama Dip’s restaurant with her two cookbooks. (Photo via Mama Dip’s)
Mildred Council was a Chapel Hill native who first opened a diner with a handful of seats in 1976 on West Rosemary Street. The expanded restaurant was built in the 1999 and the brand of Mama Dip’s — based on Mildred’s childhood nickname — grew further with two cookbooks published in 1999 and 2005. The family matriarch died in May 2018 at the age of 89, leading the rest of the Councils to assume the co-owner titles.
Similar to many local restaurants, the COVID-19 pandemic changed how Mama Dip’s operates and how the community engages with the business. Council said while the country kitchen restaurant survived, staffing shortages led to its hours and days being scaled back. She added that people continue to utilize to-go orders more than before, which has the Council family considering a change to a more fast-casual model. The idea is not a particularly new one, as Council said investors have approached the restaurant owners in the past about expanding beyond Chapel Hill.
Potential franchises and expansion of the Mama Dip’s brand, however, are down the road. Council said those discussions are still in the early steps and the eventual sale of the property will move that process further along. But she said one thing is for certain: while Mama Dip’s may ultimately move from 408 West Rosemary Street, the family is not looking to go far for its main location.
“We know we’re going to be in Chapel Hill,” said Council. “We just came up with the decision a couple months ago, so we’re in the initial planning stage — but Chapel Hill is where they want to be.”
Photo via Mama Dip’s.
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