Best Part of the Meal
by Amy Curtis
Title
Best Part of the Meal
Artist
Amy Curtis
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
JFG, which was originally founded in Morristown, Tennessee, in 1882 as a grocery company, began roasting in Knoxville in 1924. It started using the Knoxville building as its headquarters, as well as a roasting plant, in 1926.
In 2009, the building itself was transformed into an apartment complex. The old JFG Coffee sign still sits atop the complex; it is owned by Dewhirst Properties, which is responsible for JFG Flats, but JFG owner Reily Foods pays for its upkeep and its electricity bill.
“That was the arrangement when we sold (the owner) the building some years ago,” Reily Foods plant engineer Jeffrey Gamble said.
The other sign that overlooks the river, meanwhile, is owned by Reily Foods. It used to sit at the end of the Gay Street Bridge near South Knoxville, but was moved to its current location after the lease for that property was cancelled.
Reily Foods also leases the property that the sign now sits on.
JFG/Reily Foods currently has a manufacturing and distribution center in Knoxville, adding to the impact it has already had on the area.
The building that now houses apartment complex JFG Flats used to be the home of JFG Coffee Company’s headquarters and roasting plant. The slogan “The Best Part of the Meal” and JFG’s trademarked letters still adorn the outside of it.
Uploaded
September 13th, 2022
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