ELIZABETHTOWN — An Elizabethtown icon may soon be up for grabs.

Last month, a sign appeared on the Carolina Master Fried window that read “Closing until ?”, leaving many to speculate about both the cause and the duration of the closing for the beloved eatery.

“He (Master Fried owner Tommy Crowson) is going through an illness that we’ve been dealing with, and we’re still dealing with,” said Crowson’s wife Elizabeth.

For one month shy of 44 years, the walk-up restaurant with a lone cement outdoor table has served Bladen County some of the best of what the South is known for — fried foods. From sausage dogs and hush puppies to fried chicken and pork chop sandwiches, the menu has changed little over the years, but one menu item stands head a shoulders above the rest, at least in one patron’s mind.

“Their corndogs are out of this world,” said Brian Walters, who, patting his stomach, joked he had done more than his fair share to support the eatery through the years. “I could eat them by the truckload.”

Elizabeth didn’t know a deadline for making a decision about the restaurant’s future, but she did articulate which way she’s leaning right now.

“More than likely, we’ll sell,” she said.

She added that, between running back and forth to Chapel Hill for medical treatment and dealing with health issues at home, she has had too much on her plate to make a decision, but she has had many interested buyers.

“I hope somebody’s interested in buying not just the building but the business — that’s what we would prefer,” she said. “But we’re not making decisions right now — we’re just trying to get throuh the health crisis, and then we’ll think things through.”

She added, “We sure do miss the customers and being there.”

The feeling’s mutual.

“They’re good people,” voiced several men in neighboring Variety Seafood on Friday.

“I already miss them,” said Walters. “Whatever they’re doing, I wish them the best, but we sure will miss them here.”

Chrysta Carroll can be reached by calling 910-862-4163.

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By Chrysta Carroll

ccarroll@civitasmedia.com