Photo by Emma Sylvester for The Lafayette

Miss Jackson’s closure comes just three weeks after it began to accept student meal swipes.

Miss Jackson’s Kitchen will permanently close its doors today after just over a year in operation. The restaurant, which sought to bring the flavors of the South to College Hill, struggled to attract students, was criticized for high prices and would often fail to open for the duration of its posted hours.

The four students employed by Miss Jackson’s will be laid off; they will have the opportunity to apply to work at Don Juan Mex Grill locations around the Lehigh Valley. Lafayette College administration has no immediate plans for a replacement for the restaurant which sits on college property.

“The College will be seeking student ideas to occupy the space,” Geoff Labe, a finance administrator, wrote in an email. “The Student Government ad hoc dining committee will be asked to provide feedback. In addition, a survey will be shared with students and potential ideas will be shared with the Student Government ad hoc dining committee.”

It is unclear why Miss Jackson’s will be closing – Martinez did not respond when asked for clarification and the college, according to Labe, did not know of the restaurant’s closure until Martinez announced it publicly.

“I feel like their closing was very sudden,” Kelsie Bouyer ‘26 said. “Their food was just starting to really ramp up with students, especially when they started taking the meal swipe option this semester, and I’m sad to see it go.”

“We only got to go there once, but … the food was really good and the people working there were really nice,” Tim Jarkow ’27 said. 

Tate Browder ‘27 called Miss Jackson’s a “refuge” from on-campus dining options.

Miss Jackson’s replaced another short-lived restaurant venture: The Trolley Stop Diner, a college-owned restaurant that accepted meal swipes. A chief complaint students had about Miss Jackson’s was that it did not take meal swipes, an issue remedied only three weeks ago when it began to allow the use of one meal swipe per week for students.

“I’m interested to see what’s gonna be there next. I hope they take meal swipes,” Emily Mastroly ‘25 said. Jarkow and Browder echoed the sentiment.

Many students declined to comment on the development, however, as they had never eaten at Miss Jackson’s.

In response to the closure, the college will be giving all students 20 Pard Dollars in addition to the 50 provided at the start of each semester. Martinez, in his announcement of Miss Jackson’s closure, wrote that customers’ gift cards for the establishment would be honored at the Don Juan Mex Grill chain, another venture of his.

Selma O’Malley ’26 and Madeline Marriott ’24 contributed reporting.