Roxbury diner goes Hollywood for a day

Dan Devine

The Silver Slipper Restaurant is finally ready for its close-up.

The Roxbury institution has been serving its guests grits, pancakes, eggs and bacon for nearly 40 years. But earlier this week, it played host to some new visitors — a production crew working on Ben Affleck’s upcoming film “Gone, Baby, Gone.”

That’s right, the little breakfast joint around the corner from Roxbury District Court and across the street from the Dudley train station will soon be larger than life, appearing in a theater near you.

Jeffery Hernandez worked for the Slipper’s previous owners, Lenny and Daphne Matthews, and has owned and operated the restaurant with his mother Lorna for the last three years. He said the brief Hollywood experience was “extremely good, good for the neighborhood, the business and the community.”

From the time the crew showed up to begin preparing the set at 4 a.m. until they left at around 8:30 p.m., Jeffery had the chance to rub elbows with the film’s star-laden cast, which includes Affleck, his recently married brother Casey Affleck, Ed Harris and John Ashton. Ben’s wife Jennifer Garner was also on hand to watch the festivities.

“Bringing these stars to the neighborhood, to see how beautiful Roxbury is, was one of the main [reasons] why we agreed to do it,” said Jeffery.

While the Hernandez family was compensated for the use of their restaurant, Jeffery was quick to point out that he sees the Slipper’s on-screen debut as a chance for more than just fifteen minutes of fame.

“It wasn’t about money, it was about exposing my business and the neighborhood, too,” Jeffery said. “We think it will bring more people to the restaurant.”

Thankfully, the expansion didn’t come at the expense of any of the Slipper’s loyal customers — Jeffery gave them plenty of advance warning that the dining room would be closed, so he didn’t have to turn anybody away.

The Silver Slipper on the silver screen. Next thing you know, it’s going to want to direct.

The film, based on a novel by Dorchester native Dennis Lehane, is slated to hit theaters in 2007.