Gip’s Mill store, deli now dishes up Southern food

February 3, 2021 by G. Chambers Williams III

Double-cheeseburgers stacked taller than a human mouth can open are the talk of the town at the reopened Gip’s Mill Country Store and Deli near Andersonville, brought to you by a well-known figure from the Clinton restaurant scene.

Gary Thornton, former operator of Big G’s Diner in South Clinton, now cooks his specialties at Gip’s Mill, helped by his wife, Brenda.

The business is owned by the couple’s son-in-law and daughter, Jerry and Sonya Keith. But it’s the Thorntons who spend their days whipping up burgers, sandwiches, lunch and dinner entrees, side dishes and desserts for customers at the store.

It’s at 2402 Highway 61 West, Andersonville, near the entrance to Big Ridge State Park.

Thornton said the Keiths leased the building and opened the restaurant 11 months ago. Business has increased steadily as word has gotten out that Thornton and his wife are cooking again, he said. Some of their fans travel from Clinton to eat.

“Social media has been bringing us lots of customers, too, particularly from Andersonville,” he said.

The building housing the store was built in the mid-1990s and opened as a deli by Steve Foster on the family farm where he still lives along with his wife and mother. They ran the deli from 1997 to 2000, then reopened it briefly in summer 2019 before closing and later leasing the space to the Keiths.

“It was fun, but it started running me rather than me running it,” Foster said. “It’s not a huge money-maker.”

Its name comes from Steve Foster’s great-grandfather, Gibson “Gip” Warwick, who once operated a grist mill on the property. Gip’s brother Marion Warwick and his wife, Minnie, ran a country store for years in a log building just a mile or so east on Highway 61. That building is still standing, even though the store has been closed for decades.

As for the Thorntons, they’re cooking and serving again because they enjoy it, Gary Thornton said.

“I just like cooking,” he said. “It’s more like a hobby to me, not a job. I also dispense a lot of philosophy. I just love people, and I probably give away as much food as I sell.

“We specialize in Southern cooking, so if you want chicken cordon bleu, this probably isn’t the place for you.”

Thornton has a home-made smoker outside the back of the store, where he smokes some of the meats he serves. Pulled pork and hamburger steaks are on

the menu, along with fried chicken. He

serves fried catfish on Fridays.

Blue-plate specials include an entrée and three sides, usually for $7.99 ($8.99 for catfish). The store also sells cold cuts, such as bologna, ham and turkey, and cheeses by the pound. It also has bait and other fishing supplies, as well as soft drinks and snack foods.

Besides Big G’s in South Clinton, the Thorntons used to run a diner in the Frost Bottom RV Park, he said. Gary Thornton also worked for years in maintenance for Anderson County Schools.

As for the Gip’s Mill Country Store & Deli, it’s open Tuesdays through Saturdays, beginning at 8:30 a.m. It closes at 6:30 p.m. except on Fridays, when it’s open until 7 p.m., and Saturdays, when it closes at 5 p.m.

Thornton said the store will also be open on Mondays during the summer months. It is always closed on Sundays.

Gip’s Mill has its own Facebook page, where its daily lunch and dinner specials are posted.

The store phone number for takeout orders is 865-745-3155.