A downtown restaurant, Sofia on 11th, is expected to close Saturday — another victim of the recession and Furlough Fridays, as well as a somewhat obscure location. Jeremy and Vicki Bennett, both Mississippi natives, took over the restaurant four years ago with partner Martin Tejeda. Staff was reduced to a skeleton crew in June. Jeremy Bennett shared news of the closing with employees and customers on Thursday. "It just got to the point where I couldn't hold on anymore," he said. Bennett helped seat people when Sofia filled during the lunch rush. Wearing a black T-shirt as he poured iced tea, the most visible sign that he was the owner was the strain on his face. Dinner business droppe

A downtown restaurant is now home to a church that embraces gays and people of color. For more than a month, Sofia on 11th and its owners, Jeremy and Vicki Bennett and partner Martin Tejeda, have welcomed A Church for All to take over a 1,500-square-foot banquet room. That has allowed the church to continue providing a spiritual meeting place for its diverse members. The Rev. Doretha Flournoy describes it as a "radically inclusive" church with an interest in social justice and unique ideas about "how God operates in the world." "If you walk into A Church for All on a Sunday morning, you'll see African-American folks, Latino folks, Caucasians. You'll see transgender folks. You'll see dra