Photo courtesy of Jill Garcia.
In a photo from 1969, a little girl stands between her parents in the back of a kitchen, smiling like she runs the place. She doesn’t know it yet, but she will.
That girl is Jill Garcia, and 56 years later, she and her husband George and their son Josh are still running the Miracle Mile Deli in Phoenix. Still slicing up their world-famous pastrami, greeting regulars by name, and serving generations of families who first walked in as kids and now bring their own children to the same counter.
But long before she was running a deli, Jill was a theater kid.
At six years old, she walked into the doors of Phoenix Little Theatre, now The Phoenix Theatre Company, for the first time. Not to watch a show, but for dance classes, stage makeup workshops, and puppetry lessons.
A few years later, she made her stage debut in Aladdin as a dancer.
“This theater’s been in our lives almost my whole life,” she said, sitting in the theatre’s ArtBar + Bistro, between hugs and waves to cast members running to rehearsal.
Now, the Garcia family’s Miracle Mile Deli is the production sponsor of Come From Away, the Tony Award-winning musical running now until March 29 in the Dr. Stacie J. and Richard J Stephenson Theatre.
Three Generations, One Counter
The Miracle Mile story begins in 1949, when Jill’s father Jack Grodzinsky stepped off a bus from Brooklyn, New York, and crossed the street to a small Phoenix café called Pat’s Cafe. By the end of the day, he had purchased the existing café. It was a leap of faith in a city that was still figuring out what it would become.
A few years later, he took over an existing restaurant on McDowell Road, a commercial stretch locals had started calling the “Miracle Mile.” He renamed the restaurant to Miracle Mile Deli, so no one would forget where to find it.
In 1965, Grodzinsky opened a location at Christown Mall. It’s where a 15-year-old busboy named George Garcia met the owner’s daughter, Jill.
George worked his way up. He and Jill married in 1981 and eventually took over the business as Grodzinsky stepped back.
The couple soon welcomed their son Josh, who grew up doing homework on a pickle barrel in the back of the deli. He learned fractions between lunch rushes and loyalty before he could spell it.
“He was born into it,” Jill says. “We had him sitting on our lap at the theatre before he could have his own seat.”
Today, Josh oversees day-to-day operations as Miracle Mile Deli enters its third generation.
From Audience to Advocate
George wasn’t raised in the theatre the way Jill was. But one of their first dates was to see My Fair Lady with her family.
“I didn’t even know I liked theatre,” he said, sitting next to Jill. “I thought, wow, I really like this. It’s live. It’s happening right here. Before you know it, every time season tickets came out, we were there.”
With season tickets in hand, they began a friendship with The Phoenix Theatre Company that has deepened over four decades.
Producing Artistic Director Michael Barnard performed at the Garcias’ wedding 44 years ago as part of a cabaret group called Montage. Come From Away cast member Rusty Ferracane was in that same group.
“It’s a small world, it’s our Phoenix Theatre family,” Jill said.
And family shows up for each other.
When illness spread through the cast of Newsies, the Garcias arrived with chicken soup. On Saturdays, between matinee and evening performances, they’ve been known to bring meals to give performers much needed energy between shows.
L-R: Josh Garcia, Jill Garcia, and George Garcia of Miracle Mile Deli. Photo Courtesy of Jill Garcia.
The Next Generation
Josh grew up in both the theatre and the restaurant worlds. Later, living in London for a year and a half, he found himself going to West End shows alone, hunting for last-minute tickets.
Now, in a world dominated by screens, he sees live theatre differently.
“Everything is digital,” he said “But the digital age can’t feel live energy. That’s something that’s getting lost. You can’t duplicate that in-person energy anywhere else.”
Watching a concert on television is not the same as standing in the crowd.
Streaming a musical is not the same as feeling the floor vibrate beneath your seat.
Why Come From Away
Over the years, the Garcias have sponsored TPTC productions of Jersey Boys, Beautiful, Waitress, A Chorus Line, and Something Rotten, which they had seen on Broadway and lobbied to bring to Phoenix.
For them, sponsoring shows is about opening the door a little wider. Inviting in the friend who’s never gone, the neighbor who thinks theater isn’t for them.
When it came to choosing which show to sponsor this season, the choice was personal.
Come From Away tells the story of 7,000 airline passengers diverted to Gander, Newfoundland, after 9/11, and the small town that opened its homes to them.
Several cast members have told the Garcias this production feels important.
“They’re so excited to do it and care so much for the craft, it means the world to them. This show is extra special,” Jill Garcia said. “There are shows we’ve seen on Broadway that we liked better here. You can sit in any row and feel the performance. The quality. The attention to detail. They do as well here as Broadway when you really think about it.”
What Food and Theater Have in Common
Ask the Garcias what a 76-year-old deli and a 106-year-old theatre have in common, and they answer without missing a beat.
“They both bring you joy,” said Jill.
“And comfort,” George added.
Two Phoenix institutions, both built on the belief that people deserve places that make them feel something, both passed down through families, both still here.
“When you have a theater that caters to family, you guarantee longevity,” Josh said. “They remember coming here as kids. Then they bring their own kids. You’re adding to the future of theatre.”
Which show is their favorite?
George smiles.
“The next one.”
Come From Away runs through March 29, 2026 in the Dr. Stacie J. and Richard J Stephenson Theatre. Tickets start at $60 at phoenixtheatre.com or (602) 254-2151.
Miracle Mile Deli is the production sponsor of Come From Away. Visit miraclemiledeli.com.
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