‘A breadth of options’: Travel writers rave about Macon as downtown business sees boom

MACON, Ga. — On a quiet weeknight in downtown Macon, Georgia at Kudzu Seafood, the staff rushes around, getting things ready for the dinner service.

One waitress carefully wraps up silverware. The bartender wipes down her counter. The kitchen is buzzing with activity as pots and pans clatter and food sizzles in pans. It's the calm before the storm, says owner Lee Clack. At 5 o'clock, everything changes.

"We'll have parties walking in, and they'll be ready for the lights at 6 o'clock," Clack said.

The Downtown Macon Christmas Light Extravaganza pulls in a crowd every night. Clack says many visit restaurants like his before the show starts.

Sure enough, like clockwork, the crowds flooded in. All this is nothing new for Clack and his crew. After all, just a few weeks ago, they finished the week with the best sales they've ever had in their location on Poplar and 3rd Street.

"Our busiest week since Cherry Blossom," Clack said.

He says the lights get bigger every year, bringing in more hungry diners. Clack thinks Macon's new-found spotlight in the national press is a big part of the success.

"Getting a lot of great national press, not only for the Christmas lights, but that downtown Macon is one of the coolest downtowns in the south," he said.

There's a reason for all the national attention. Visit Macon's 2022 goal was getting travel writers to town, says Marisa Rodgers, the agency's marketing director.

"Trying to get the word out about the music history, the soon-to-be national park designation, everything that's going on in the next year," Rodgers said.

Conde Nast, Forbes, Southern Living and CBS Mornings all gave Macon a shout-out this year. They've written about the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, the growing downtown area and the amphitheater the county is building at the Macon Mall.

"Trying to show that there's a breadth of options that can not only give you a day of fun here, but multiple days in a row," Rodgers said.

If you are in town visiting, Lee Clack hopes you'll pay him a visit, too, for a taste of the Gulf in the heart of Georgia. Rodgers says the next big thing they're trying to get the spotlight on is the Cherry Blossom Festival, set to kick off March 17.