A cafeteria line at the the K&W at Kannapolis Mall in 1985. Photo: Charlotte Observer Negatives Collection, Courtesy of the Robinson-Spangler Carolina Room, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.
Zach here. It's probably been more than a decade since I lined up with a plastic tray and ordered a meat-and-three (plus a dessert) at K&W Cafeterias. But here I am, in the year 2025, sad to report I will never have that opportunity again.
It's not totally surprising. The chain — affectionately known as Kanes & Walkers for the older crowd it attracted — had already closed many of its locations.
But its shuttering feels like the loss of a relic to a style of Southern eating long lost to modern generations. A place where the choices were bountiful (if more fried than healthy), the booths comfortable, the chances of running into someone you knew high and the prices relatively fair.
And while I haven't rushed back to the K&W line in many, many years (it was usually my grandfather's idea when I ate there), I will dearly miss many of its staple items.
I'll be thinking most fondly of the baked spaghetti, the meatloaf, a side of mac and cheese, finishing it off with banana pudding and ogling at how many colors of jello existed.
Pro tip: The N.C. General Assembly's cafeteria — open to everyone — provides a decent K&W facsimile in a pinch.
