VALDOSTA — Steel Magnolias has landed on Georgia Trend Magazine’s Silver Spoon Awards for the second year running.

The Silver Spoon Awards recognize restaurants across the state.

It’s great to be included,” said Keira Moritz, owner of Steel Magnolias. “It’s a very nice nod for Steel Magnolias. It’s good to see they’re recognizing restaurants outside of Atlanta on the list. Restaurants outside of Atlanta, we’ve got to work a little harder, fight a little harder to get recognized.”

Moritz opened Steel Magnolias four years ago after visiting family in Valdosta for the 2010 holidays.

The restaurant has quickly taken off, something that Moritz credits to the team at Steel Magnolias.

“We’ve got a rock-solid slamming team,” Moritz said. “In the restaurant business, the people you work with are the family you see more than your actual family.”

Now, she’s getting ready to open her second Valdosta business, Birdies, a cross between a country store and an urban market.

“It’s the revitalization of the general store,” said Moritz.

It’s not something she imagined she’d be doing so soon after opening Steel Magnolias.

“When we opened Steel Magnolias, I thought we would do a second something,” said Moritz. “I didn’t know it would be in four years.”

The idea for Birdies got its start in the middle of 2014, when the roof collapsed on a building half a block down from Steel Magnolias on North Patterson Street.

“That building just sat there for months with a collapsed roof,” Moritz said.

After watching it sit there for a number of months, Moritz decided to turn it into something.

That came with its challenges.

The restoration for Steel Magnolias took eight months.

The restoration for Birdies has taken 11 months so far, with crews taking it down to dirt floors and foundations.

But now work is nearing completion, with plans to open Birdies in the first part of 2016.

Two stories tall, Birdies will serve breakfast and lunch.

The menu is still being hammered out, but Moritz wants to keep it simple, five to six items apiece for the breakfast and the lunch menu.

Customers will be able to buy pre-made casseroles and Moritz is considering adding pizza as well.

Birdies will also give Moritz a chance to expand Steel Magnolias catering options and the second floor of Birdies will be open for event hosting: dinners, cocktail parties, charity events.

But while there’s fresh food, Moritz’s focus is on the retail side.

“We need people coming down here (downtown) to stay,” Moritz said. “We can’t get them to stay here if all we have is restaurants.”

Birdies will have a wine shop with cheese and craft beer, housewares, pots and pans, gifts.

Moritz wants to bring in Georgia Grown products: pecan products from the South Georgia Pecan Company, jams and jellies, cheese straws and honey, among others.

“I want it to have everything,” said Moritz. “I want it to be a place you can always come and find something here, something you like, a gift for someone. And I want to see it grow. It’s got to stick its fork into the ground and hold its own.

“We want to encourage people to shop local. When you shop downtown, you’re shopping with your neighbors. It’s about keeping your local dollars local.”

Stuart Taylor is a reporter for the Valdosta Daily Times.