Buffalo Girls, Brown Bag are a ready-for-Christmas duo

December 20, 2006
By Bill Sontag
Feature Writer

Brown and Assistant Manager Nancy O’Brien keep display windows fresh year-around, but the Buffalo Girls face to Main Street receives particular attention and lavish color during holiday seasons. (LIVE! photo/Bill Sontag) (click image to enlarge)

Shannon Brown no longer needs vindication for her move from a successful but nearly forgotten venture on Veterans Boulevard, where she began her enterprise in March, 1998, to Del Rio’s historic downtown.

Buffalo Girls owner/manager Shannon Brown adjusts and perfects ornaments on one of several Christmas trees that adorn her shop. (LIVE! photo/Bill Sontag) (click image to enlarge)

Clients have followed her 2003 relocation, and new ones have joined her loyal following for fine gifts at Buffalo Girls and great food in the adjoining Brown Bag Deli. The 2,800-square-foot store anchoring the south corner of the 400 block of South Main Street keeps Brown and her “family” of seven sales associates, servers and cooks busy from opening ‘till closing.

Buffalo Girls, boasting an ever-changing inventory of ladies’ fashions, shoes, clothing, jewelry and scarves is augmented with a variety of contemporary gift items and humorous knick-knacks. This season, a collection of fire engine-red pillows greets customers with embroidered slogans: “Don’t get your tinsel in a tangle,” and “Just Clause.”

“Saints are a very popular thing right now,” said Brown, Friday (Dec. 1), explaining that saints including Madonna and Virgin Mary appear in her shop as figurines, bracelet charms, and necklaces. “We also have lots of turquoise jewelry, also in style for many customers,” she added.

Decorative crosses and perfumed soybean oil candles are abundant at Buffalo Girls. “These candles burn more evenly and scent a room a lot longer,” Brown explained. All her seasonal inventory will be available until mid-January.

But Brown wants shoppers to linger longer or come early enough to sit in the comfortable Brown Bag dining room to enjoy what she believes is a unique opportunity to sample a huge 40-item menu of sandwiches, soups and salads.

Maria Segura, head cook, prepares fresh salad fixin’s in the small kitchen of the Brown Bag Deli. Segura is Shannon Brown’s longest-tenured, loyal employee. “She’s been with us right from the start,” Brown said, stressing the popularity of Segura’s tortilla soup, popular in all seasons of the year. (LIVE! photo/Bill Sontag) (click image to enlarge)

“What we are known for around here is our tortilla soup,” Brown said, crediting her longstanding cook, Maria Segura, for a satisfying recipe that customers request repeatedly. Friday, one of the first chilly days of Del Rio’s coming winter, Segura produced and Brown sold about 15 gallons of the spicy, creamy concoction.

“We also have homemade desserts, casseroles, quiches, and we can do full catering with all of these as well as any items on our big menu,” Brown said. “If you haven’t come to try our food, please come. It’s a very homey atmosphere,” Brown invited LIVE! readers.

Gift certificates are available for both the Brown Bag Deli, open Monday through Saturday, 10:30 a.m. – 4 p.m., and Buffalo Girls, 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. “For last minute shoppers, we’ll be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.,” Brown said.