Lessie Mae Lambert, of Ida's Soul Food

WHEN ACTOR Sidney Poitier and his entourage showed up at Ida's Famous Soul Food Restaurant, in North Philadelphia, one evening, owner Lessie Mae Lambert locked the front and back doors so they could have a peaceful dining experience.

Taking care of customers - the famous and the just-plain-folk from the neighborhood - was a hallmark of Lessie's philosophy of running an eatery.

That, and the soul food concocted in the kitchen of Ida's, at 19th Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue, made the restaurant a Philly landmark beginning in 1942, patronized by entertainers, politicians, sports figures and other hungry folk from far and wide.

Lessie Mae, who inherited the restaurant from her mother, Ida Generette, was also a gospel singer, musician, community activist and churchwoman. She died Aug. 5. She was 78 and lived in North Philadelphia.

The restaurant closed in 1993, but Lessie couldn't face being idle. She went to work as a supervisor for Chatwell's International Food Corp., at Girard College, where her staff earned the title of "Lessie's Troops."

Lessie was born in Philadelphia to Henry and Ida Felder. She graduated from Germantown High School and later from the Philadelphia Evening High School.

She was only 8 when she and her late sister, Rosalie Crawford, went to work with their mother at the restaurant. Over the years, Lessie was a waitress, cook and general factotum until her mother's death in 1963, when she took over the operation.

Among loyal customers were former Mayor W. Wilson Goode Sr., actor Red Foxx, boxing champ Joe Frazier, singer Phyllis Hyman and civil-rights leader Jesse Jackson, who made a number of visits to Ida's while running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988.

The restaurant specialities included sweet-potato pie, peach cobbler, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, banana pudding - all cooked with ingredients that Lessie insisted on keeping secret.

She claimed that customers could not duplicate her dishes at home.

Waitresses wore white uniforms with fresh-flower corsages pinned to them, and were under orders to treat customers with respect, even the flirts and the grumpy.

Lessie was a legendary hard worker, regularly putting in 12-hour days at the restaurant.

Lessie's mother was something of a legend herself. A portrait of her wearing a navy-blue suit with a white hat hung in the restaurant. The photo was taken after Ida had won another best-dressed award at the Easter Parade. She won so regularly that she finally withdrew to give other women a chance.

Both Ida and her daughter made it a practice to give free meals to those who couldn't afford to pay.

Lessie sang alto on the young people's choir at the Church of the Living God, at 43rd and Aspen streets, and also sang with a prominent gospel group, the Eason Singers.

She hung posters advertising gospel events in the restaurant. She also had played the trombone.

She was active with the NAACP, the Columbia Avenue Business Association and the Philadelphia Corporation Development Center.

Lessie was influential with young people, tirelessly encouraging them to pursue education. One of the beneficiaries of her guidance is her nephew Edward Raheem Crawford, who is pursuing a doctorate in organizational leadership.

"Her zeal, zest and quest for knowledge helped her to encourage children to stay in school and to seek higher educational opportunities," her family said.

She is survived by nieces and nephews.

Services: Were Wednesday. Burial was in Fernwood Cemetery. *