HINESVILLE, Ga. (WSAV) – TikTok’s favorite Hinesville restaurant will be shutting its doors after 12 years.

“Over COVID, everything changed, and it never came back,” said owner Glenn Poole.

Post-pandemic, Izola’s owners say rising food costs and staffing difficulties have led them to shut their doors for good. They announced it on TikTok to their 503,000 followers.

“As we all know, seasons change,” said Poole in the TikTok announcement. “On Nov. 30, 2023, we will light our ovens, open our doors and scoop that mac, one last time.”

The restaurant went viral in just one weekend two years ago. Since then, they’ve posted daily showing off their buffet line to their loyal followers.

“We have hotels calling us and thanking us for filling up the hotels because people have come here to eat at the restaurant,” said Poole. “Just to get our food in the mouths of people from all over the world, it’s been an honor for us.”

Poole says young people weren’t normally interested in their food, just Southerners looking to eat nostalgia for lunch. But after TikTok, everything changed.

“I didn’t know what TikTok was,” Poole said.

People from all over the world have been watching the Hinesville restaurant serve up recipes from Grandma Izola.

“Africa, Germany, we had one guy who was following us for like two years and he flew all the way over here from Australia just to eat here,” said Poole.

The owners say they don’t have any plans for what’s next other than resting up after 40 years in the food industry.

“We’re going to miss seeing all you wonderful folks and meeting all you wonderful TikTokers that have followed us from around the world,” said owner Lori Poole. “We really hope you’ll come and see us one more time and give us a fine farewell. We really want to see you again.”