'Everyone is family': Come 'n Git It Diner offers a taste of home cooking in Martinsville

Lance Gideon, The Reporter Times
·3 min read
Jackie Blackwell, owner of Come N Git It, signs Sheila Sparks’ “passport” during a community event in 2019.
Jackie Blackwell, owner of Come N Git It, signs Sheila Sparks’ “passport” during a community event in 2019.

Editor’s note: This is the fifth and final in a multi-part series of articles featuring local small businesses centered on the tourism industry in Morgan County. The series was created in conjunction with the Greater Martinsville Chamber of Commerce as part of National Small Business Week and Visit Morgan County as part of National Travel and Tourism Week.

Walking into Come 'n Git It Diner at the corner of Main and Morgan streets in downtown Martinsville is a lot like walking into grandma's house.

And that's exactly how Jackie Blackwell wants it to be.

Blackwell, who owns the eatery with her daughter Christy Nesta, considers many of the customers and her employees like family.

More stories about National Small Business Week and National Travel and Tourism Week:

Restaurant history

The restaurant started operating out of a trailer in August 2014.

Over the next couple of years, the business gradually moved into its current location.

"In 2015, we brought seating inside and 2016 we brought everything inside," Blackwell said.

Sitting inside the restaurant, customers likely notice the country charm of the décor.

There are farm tools and children's drawings hanging on the wall and the smell of food wafting in the air.

It's those little hints of a hometown feel that Blackwell and her daughter was aiming for when they opened the restaurant.

"That's what I wanted it to be like," Blackwell said. "I wanted it to feel like you were coming home to your parents' or grandparents' home. Everyone is family who walks in the door."

Local news: About 15% of Morgan County voters cast ballots in Tuesday's primary election.

Blackwell also considers the employees just as much part of the family as the customers — referring to herself as "mom-boss"

"I kind of hire (the employees) and adopt them at the same time," Blackwell said.

Community support during COVID pandemic

The last couple of years have been difficult for restaurants in general as many were forced to change their business models due to the COVID-19 pandemic which began in 2020.

The restaurants in downtown Martinsville, as well as other businesses, had an even more difficult time in 2020 because of street closures for updates to the city's water infrastructure.

The community's generosity, Blackwell said, allowed Come 'n Git It to survive.

"If I were in a bigger community, I probably wouldn't be here," Blackwell said. "But, in a smaller community, they care. They care about the business owners."

The community's support in 2020 was an answer to a number of her prayers.

"I prayed every night," Blackwell noted.

Come ‘n Git It Diner is located at 96 N. Main Street in downtown Martinsville.
Come ‘n Git It Diner is located at 96 N. Main Street in downtown Martinsville.

While 2020 was a hard year, 2021 brought in a number of new customers to the restaurant.

That's because a five-mile stretch of State Road 37 was closed most of the year, and a lot of the traffic from the highway went through downtown Martinsville.

"The (Interstate) 69 closure, after downtown opened, actually brought be a lot of business," Blackwell said. "Those people have then gone out and told other people."

Blackwell noted many of the customers who came in while the highway was closed never knew Martinsville had a downtown, and have returned multiple times to the restaurant.

More: Mooresville addressing issues at wastewater treatment plant.

Like many restaurants and businesses in Morgan County, Come 'n Git It participates in one of the culinary trails hosted by the Indiana Foodways Alliance.

The trails showcase a number of different food options for travelers in Indiana, including pies, barbecue and tenderloins.

Come 'n Git It is on the tenderloin trail, which includes Sgt. Peppers Chicken in Martinsville and Squealers in Mooresville.

Other local businesses that are on one of the trails include the Martinsville Candy Kitchen and Gray Brothers Cafeteria on the pie trail; Cedar Creek Winery, Distillery and Brewery on the distillery trail and Zydeco's on the cultural cuisine trail.

Contact Reporter-Times editor Lance Gideon at lgideon@reporter-times.com or 765-342-1543. Follow him on Twitter: @LanceOGideon.

This article originally appeared on The Reporter Times: Come and Get It Diner offers a taste of home cooking in Martinsville