Lily Grabb has closed Lily’s Asian-American Food in Downtown Jacksonville. | Dan Macdonald, Jacksonville Daily Record
Published on November 21, 2025 at 2:51 pm
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Less than nine months after it opened in Downtown Jacksonville’s historic core, Lily’s Asian-American Food is closed.
Owner Lily Grabb said she shut down the restaurant at 11 E. Forsyth in mid-October after struggling to attract lunch customers, an issue she blamed partly on remote or hybrid work policies for Downtown workers. As in other cities, Downtown Jacksonville’s worker population fell during the pandemic and has yet to return to pre-2020 levels as some employers continue to allow staff to work remotely.
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In addition, some employers left for offices elsewhere. Vacancy in Downtown offices has been at 25% or higher since 2021, according to Downtown Vision Inc.’s annual State of Downtown report.
Read the rest of this story at the Jacksonville Daily Record, a Jacksonville Today news partner.
