by Garrick A. Moritz, editor
UPDATE 8/11/21: As of August 10, 2021, Omar Thornton has stepped down from owning a restaurant altogether. On his Facebook Page, he announced his mental health and physical health were the main drivers of the decision, and all O's at Wiley's employees would now be Wiley's employees. No word was given what changes would be made to the menu. Omar stated he would continue his philanthropic works, and would also continue to update followers on what he was doing to keep his chef dream alive.
The news broke last week after our normal print deadlines that O So Good in Garretson would be closing its doors in Garretson and moving to Sioux Falls. The Gazette was actually one of, if not the first news outlet to hear about this, but because many of the details were not finalized at the time we respected the wishes of Chef Omar Thornton and held the news until this publication date. Though we’re going to be sad to see this business leave Garretson, we also can’t deny the many successes it had, carried by the unique personality and skills of Chef Omar Thornton.
We at the Gazette have been some of Chef O biggest fans since he opened. We’ve reported on O So Good a number of times over the past 4 years because it’s been quite newsworthy, winning local and regional awards as well as being featured on local television multiple times and on national television.
It’s no secret that the pandemic was hard on everyone, and especially hard on restaurants. In its four-year history in Garretson, O So Good had trouble getting and keeping staff, right from the get go.
“I take on full responsibility here, any failures we’ve had in the leadership department are 100 percent on me,” said Chef Thornton. “When I make a mistake, I own up to it. That’s just an aspect of my faith and what I believe in. I can be stubborn and set in my ways. I’m not perfect and I make mistakes, and people who know me know that I internalized that, and try to be better going forward. I don’t always succeed, and that’s on me, though I will always keep trying. I’ve come a long way, but I have a long way to go.”
Much of the problem stems from the limited job-seeking pool in the community, and the difficulties of people who live in Sioux Falls coming to Garretson to work. Still, Chef O said that he always put salary at the top of his lists.
“Our salaries are more per hour than almost anyone else in the restaurant game in the area, or even maybe the state,” he said. “When I compare notes with other people in the business, they can’t believe what my starting salaries are. For me it’s simple, I want their best, so I pay the best I can.”
Thornton is a huge believer in second chances and forgiveness, because in his own life he’s needed them too. This is a fact that he’s made no secret about. If the rumor mill is to be believed, he gave some employees more chances than they deserved, especially when they showed up to work intoxicated. Thornton would say little on the matter, save this.
“Did I trust some people I shouldn’t have, and did I make decisions that were based on my desire to help people rather than on good business. Sure, I did. I might have done things differently had I known, but then again, I might not have. You make the best choices you can with what you know at the time, that’s life. I’ve always tried to put my best effort forward to the community and the people who live here. I held out more than a few olive branches and held out my hand, only to have it slapped away.”
Social media too has also been a double-edged sword for Thornton and the restaurant. While great at promotions and sharing updates for their many fans and foodies, it’s opened the door for a lot of hate and ignorance to flourish. Much of it boils down to him being a black man owning and operating a restaurant in a predominantly white small town. One might have hoped, this being 21st century America, that this kind of vileness would be shamed into nonexistence by now, yet it still rears its ugly head, and Thornton sadly admits that he still hears it, both directly and indirectly.
“People say things on Facebook that they would never say in person or directly to your face,” he said. “The only thing I’ll say is to encourage forgiveness, tolerance and simple politeness every day, and especially before you hit post.”
Thornton said that he and his wife (Renae Cruz-Thornton) formed this partnership with the idea of investing in the community in which they live.
“I love Garretson and that’s not going to change,” he said. “We built a home and a life here, our kids go to school and play sports here and when we decided to go forward with opening this restaurant, we did it because we wanted to contribute to the community. We took out a second mortgage on our home to help us pay for it. And for four years, we managed some real successes and I’ m proud of that.”
Case in point, the visit from Guy Fieri and the hit TV show, Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives.
“This isn’t just a high point for the restaurant, it was a high point of my life,” he said. “I’m proud of that and will be forever grateful to everyone who was a part of it, and made it happen. We brought the Triple D to Garretson, and I’m still so proud and grateful for that.”
But the Triple D hurt while it was helping. After the episode aired, more and more and more people came to eat at O So Good. It was hard just to get a table and the staff started working longer and longer shifts. Putting strain on an already stressed operation caused fractures and eventually Thornton said he had to reduce operation hours so he didn’t lose the staff he had left. With his building lease coming due, and bills piling up, he got an offer he simply couldn’t refuse.
“Wiley’s Tavern in downtown Sioux Falls is sort of a special place for me and my wife,” he said. “It’s one of the most popular bar and night clubs in the area. We had a lot of our first dates there. Talking with the owner, only a very small percentage of his business is food, and he wants to change that, and offer more to his customers. So, he came to me with a proposal for a partnership, to bring O So Good to them.”
The opportunity was just too good for Thornton to say no. He said he had to do a lot of soul searching, and that it was a very hard decision.
“I didn’t want to close our location here, Renae and I put so much of our own personalities into this place that it’s a real gut punch to move out, but I also have to do what’s right for my family too,” he said. “The owners of the building did everything they could to accommodate us. However, they need to make a profit too and we need the business to be solvent, and if this opportunity is as profitable as I think it could be, who knows, maybe we’ll be back in a few years, and maybe build something from the ground up, we’ll just have to see.”
Meanwhile Chef O said that he’ll honor all the catering commitments that he’s currently made and will still have the restaurant opened on a limited basis, until July 10th. Also, as promised the framed historical photos in the restaurant will go back to the people who donated them or to the local historical society.
“I want to let everyone who has supported and helped us for the last 4 years to make O So Good on 3rd and Main in Garretson everything that it was,” he said. “I didn’t do it alone, I have a lot of people who believed in it and in me, and you just can’t understand how much that means to me.”
