The co-founder of two popular Jacksonville restaurants — Biscottis in Avondale and bb's on the Southbank — has died.
Karin Tucker, 74, died Friday, Sept. 4, according to Jonas Loh, who currently owns the restaurants. He and business partner Lindsay Bush purchased them 4½ years ago from Tucker and her business partner Barbara Bredehoeft.
"We love the ladies so we wanted to continue their legacy," he said.
Bredehoeft said Jacksonville's "culinary community has lost a true restaurateur."
"Karin was so gifted with flavors and spices. She could speak four languages and had a way with people of all walks of life," she said. "She was generous and thoughtful and giving. … I will miss her dearly."
Tucker's cause of death was unavailable.
Loh said the restaurants
are planning a celebration of life for Tucker, tentatively on her birthday, Oct. 19.
Posts on the restaurants' Facebook pages called Tucker a "hospitality pioneer."
"Karin Tucker was a trailblazer in the restaurant industry," one of the posts said. "Born to be the life of the party, she was the visionary creator behind countless spectacular events. Her incredible knowledge of food, her radiant smile and her infectious laugh will remain forever in our hearts."
Robert Arleigh White, a longtime Jacksonville resident who now lives in Asheville, North Carolina, commented on the post, saying the loss was "heartbreaking." She and Bredehoeft were major contributors to the local "food scene," he said.
"It is no secret that the food at Biscottis — and bb's, too — has nurtured me over time," he later told the Times-Union. "Once, when Biscottis was closed for a couple of weeks due to a kitchen fire, someone posted on Facebook, 'Has anyone thought about Bob White? What is he going to eat?!' "
Commenter Robin Anderson said Tucker was "definitely a trailblazer."
"She's in heaven cooking awesome food for the angels, definitely baking the sweets," she wrote.
Tucker "was a pioneer as a powerful business woman in the city back in day," commenter George Trefry wrote.
And Richard Goodman wrote, "Truly one of a kind and a real pioneer as an entrepreneur in the restaurant industry."
In a 2010 Times-Union article, Tucker and Bredehoeft recounted their careers as restaurateurs. They met when Tucker moved to Jacksonville for a job and rented an apartment from Bredehoeft's then-boyfriend. Tucker had worked many years in restaurants and Bredehoeft managed the Silver Spoon restaurant at The Jacksonville Landing.
The women "shared an adventurous, ambitious drive and a desire to bring to Jacksonville a metropolitan coffee house, such as those in found big cities," according to the story.
In 1993, they opened Biscottis as a 37-seat coffee house, later adding salads, sandwiches and pizzas. The eatery went on to be come an Avondale landmark, featured in USA Today Weekend and GO InFlight Magazine.
"It's common sense. We're women. You have to be flexible, multi-task," Tucker said in the story. "It's about hospitality. Taking care of your people, out front and in the back, meaning your staff."
They eventually added a catering business, then a second restaurant — bb's in San Marco — in 2000 and then a bakery in 2008. Tucker handled Biscottis, catering and marketing, while Bredehoeft led bb's, hiring and number-crunching, according to the Times-Union story.
Beth Reese Cravey has been a reporter for The Florida Times-Union for 45 years, currently specializing in nonprofits and health. She can be reached at bcravey@jacksonville.com.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Beloved Jacksonville restaurateur Karin Tucker dies at 74
