From Michigan to Milledgeville, LaMecca Watkins has not only found her forever home, but a place where she feels her passion can make a difference.
Watkins moved to Milledgeville from Michigan in 2020 after meeting her husband at a plant-based restaurant in Atlanta.
“He just happened to be in line, and I just asked him what was good on the menu, and here we are," said Watkins.
She and her husband, Harry Watkins, made the decision to open up Taste and See Plant-Based Eatery in Milledgeville in 2020. They had both previously been on their plant-based journeys, but after meeting, they decided to begin a new one together.
“We wanted to open up something where people can understand that food is our first medicine. People come in for all kinds of advice from us and it’s just a blessing to be able to show the community,” said Watkins. “We both had training in understanding more about the body.”
Watkins lived most of her life in Michigan, where she first planned to work in the computer information systems field. Today, she says she is totally grounded and rooted in Milledgeville, where she finds the more “homey, country place” quite serene compared to her urban upbringing.
When Watkins spoke of her journey, it was evident that food, for her, goes hand in hand with a fulfilling and happy life. While she was always a healthy eater, it was her daughter who suggested they go plant-based when she was left feeling sick after eating certain foods.
“Just understanding and doing my research and knowing what the food is doing and what they’ve been doing to the food to make us sicker,” said Watkins. “The passion came from just understanding and knowing that we had to do better. It starts with us.”
While some may be apprehensive about working with their partner, Watkins feels blessed to be in the position she is in.
“I never thought I would want to work with my husband until I worked with my husband…He is my partner in everything and I’m very thankful to even have the relationship that we have. It’s truly from God," said Watkins.
Watkins and her husband also enjoy serving the community outside of their restaurant by hosting cooking classes, assisting Georgia College & State University with their heart-healthy initiative, and holding a diabetes reversal seminar for their church.
Watkins plans to spend the rest of her life in Milledgeville with her husband, where she has ambitious goals for herself and the community.
“For me in particular, I would love to see our area turned into a blue zone where people live to be over a hundred because of how they eat and the way they live their lives," said Watkins.