Science Hill Inn, the iconic Southern dining spot in Shelbyville, at 525 Washington St., has closed, due to the continuing illness of his chef and co-owner Ellen Gill McCarty.The Gill family has owned and operated the elegant restaurant that shares part of the former Science Hill School with an upscale antique and gift store for 40 years.

The menu was comprised of traditional Southern fancy home cooking. If you wanted fried chicken, Carolina shrimp and grits, a Hot Brown, Kentucky country ham served on buttermilk biscuits with honey or a Kentucky Bibb lettuce salad, served in high style in a dining room that tried to capture the genteel style of Southern gentry, Science Hill Inn was the place to go.

In a press release, Chef Ellen McCarty said, “it’s bittersweet. We will miss loyal customers who became friends and family, but I look forward to serving them and others in my new spot.” McCarty hopes to continue her chef career as she recovers from her illness.