BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) -- A longtime restaurant and adjoining bakery in the heart of Mountain Brook's English Village will embark on a new chapter as Carole Griffin, the owner who led the businesses for 40 years, retires.
Chez Lulu and Continental Bakery recently announced that David Griner, a veteran journalist, would take over both businesses. Chez Lulu first opened in 1995 while the bakery first opened in 1985. Griner officially took over the business last November.
"To our community of passionate regulars: I promise that everything you love about the bakery and cafe will continue—and I hope you'll even find new things to love as we continue Carole's tradition of iterating and innovating," Griner said in a statement.
Griffin had been with the businesses since the beginning, shepherding in cuisine that covered everywhere from France and Italy and across Europe. The restaurant also featured different artistic endeavors over the years, from opera to jugglers and the Brazilian drumming group that backed up Paul Simon on "Rhythm of the Saints." Next door, Continental Bakery makes fresh breads and desserts every day.
"The past 40 years have been so much more than a business or a job to me—more even than a calling or a vocation," Griffin wrote in a post on Facebook. "The bakery has felt like a cherished child to me, or a beautiful dream, and I have poured my heart into nurturing and shepherding it through these forty years as a grateful attendant and rapt enthusiast."