“It’s been a great ride,” said Laura Benedict, reflecting on her nearly 50 years running The Red Barn in Augusta.

In early July, Benedict announced on social media that her nephews — Shane, Trever and Logan Benedict — will take over the family business.

Laura Benedict ran the restaurant since the 1980s after she bought The Red Barn from her brother, Jimmy Benedict.

This summer, she decided it was time to start her life elsewhere: in Cape Coral, Florida, where she is enjoying a slower-pace after 48 years in the restaurant business.

Laura Benedict insists that she would not have retired or passed on the restaurant if her nephews were not up to the task.

“They’ve been running it for the past five years already,” she said. “I’ve seen how they do it. When I made the announcement, I was worried that people would be nervous about the change, but ownership brings challenges and it’s still in the family. They have done it this whole time.”

The Red Barn, located at 455 Riverside Drive, opened in 1977 and features fried seafood as well as hamburgers, hot dogs and fried chicken.

Most of the large Benedict family play a roll in the restaurant’s operations.

Originally started by Robert Benedict, Shane and Trever’s father.

Brothers Shane and Trever will run the restaurant with their cousin Logan. The food truck will continue to operate, but by Howard Donaldson and Ronnie Benedict as a separate entity. Several family members work at The Red Barn as well, they mentioned.

Shane Benedict said the restaurant will continue to operate the way it has for almost 50 years.

“The quality, the speed. Everything is going to stay the same. We are not going to skimp on this,” Shane Benedict said.

And, the food will stay the same, like Laura’s seafood chowder and the lobster rolls, which Shane said the restaurant sells hundreds of on a daily basis, especially to people who are from out of state.

The restaurant gets tourists in the summer, but relies on local patrons through the winter.

“At any given time, you’ll see a quarter to a third are out-of-state plates,” Shane Benedict said. “It’s always been a thing, especially in the summer time, but the big thing for us in Maine and in the food industry are the locals who are the unsung heroes who keep us open year round.”

When Laura Benedict announced that her nephews will take over the restaurant, sales the following weekend were up 40% to 50%, she said, adding that it is the summertime in Maine, but people responded well to the news.

“Everything is selling through the roof,” Shane Benedict said.

With the restaurant out of her hands, Laura Benedict said that she looks forward to bagging groceries at the Publix in Florida.

She, however, will make trips back up to Maine to tend to her garden at The Red Barn. “That’s the only thing I know they do not know how to do,” Benedict joked of her nephews.

The Red Barn is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.