GLOSTER &8212; The buffet line at the Hitchin&8217; Post Cafe was in a lull about 1 p.m. Friday. But with another hour of lunch service to go, Angie Rodgers hurried from the kitchen with a steaming tray of catfish, a refill for the next round of diners.

Among those already seated for lunch were workers from the nearby Georgia-Pacific plywood plant, recently re-opened and now providing a shot in the arm for businesses such as the caf/.

The daily buffet included the catfish along with hushpuppies, chicken tetrazini, shrimp, lasagna, stuffed crab, peas, rice and gravy and more.

&8220;It&8217;s good Southern cooking,&8221; said David Higginbotham, who owns the

caf/ along with his wife, Lei.

Some diners chose from the menu instead of the buffet &8212; grilled or fried seafood platters, salads, sandwiches and more.

&8220;If we didn&8217;t have a place like this to come to eat, I don&8217;t know what we&8217;d do,&8221; one Georgia-Pacific worker said. &8220;It&8217;s good food. Without this place, we&8217;d have to go no telling how far for a greasy hamburger.&8221;

The couple purchased the caf/ only about five years ago. Not long after that, Georgia-Pacific announced the closing of its two mills in Southwest Mississippi, one in Gloster and one in Roxie.

&8220;The closing of the Gloster mill sent us to the point of just breaking even,&8221; Higginbotham said.

Lei Higginbotham agreed. &8220;It makes you anxious for something like that to happen,&8221; she said. &8220;We worried that the whole town would close down.&8221;

With the re-opening of the Gloster and Roxie mills, the caf/ already has begun to see an increase in business.

&8220;It&8217;s exciting,&8221; Lei said. &8220;Hopefully, this will bring more business to the whole

town. It&8217;s a beautiful old town.&8221;

Indeed, pretty neighborhoods and a downtown that retains some of its earlier handsome and more prosperous era should help to inspire the town to regain economic stability, she said.

&8220;I just hope this will bring back our medical offices,&8221; Lei said. &8220;Right now, everyone has to go out of town for medical help.&8221;

The caf/ employs eight other workers. That number could grow as demands for services increase along with population changes in the area.

The roomy caf/ with its rustic, attractive interior began as a drive-through restaurant, said David, who is a food salesman with Sysco.

The former owner enlarged the caf/. And the Higginbothams have changed the menu to accommodate new clientele.

&8220;We had to change with the times,&8221; David said. &8220;We changed from being just a fish house.&8221;

Fish and steaks remain favorites. However, fish now is offered grilled as well as fried. Further, pasta dishes and some other new items are on the evening menu.

The caf/ is open for lunch, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday and on Sunday; and for dinner, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 5 to 9 p.m.