Food for the soul

To JoAnna King, soul food means more than just a meal of fried chicken, macaroni and cheese and collard greens. It also means feeding the human soul.

King, pastor at God’s Outreach Deliverance, located at 124 N. Maple St., is currently in the process of opening a restaurant called JoAnna’s Soul Food, located at 211 N. Pine St. Opening day is scheduled for April 29.

“The Lord spoke it to me, and told me to open up a restaurant,” King said.

Decorated with orange walls, purple grapes and vines and scrolls of scripture throughout the long rooms, the business will offer different meats like fried chicken, catfish and turkey, and a variety of side dishes, such as macaroni and cheese, black-eyed peas and applesauce. Drinks and desserts will also be available. Alcohol will not be served, and prices are comparable to the area.

The restaurant is set up to be “server friendly,” as King put it. She compared it to serving God, in that those who come in for a hot meal can order from the menu chalked on the walls, a server will go to a buffet-style hot table in the back of the restaurant and the patrons are immediately served their food.

“Our goal is to watch people be blessed in food and fellowship,” King said.

The restaurant’s logo consists of a plate on which are a chicken leg to represent food, and an ichthys, or “Jesus fish,” to represent faith.

King’s hope as owner of JoAnna’s Soul Food is to employ between eight and 10 people struggling to find jobs, such as single parents, former addicts and those recently out of prison. The restaurant will be open for two meals, which will be lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and dinner from 5 to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. King said breakfast is a future possibility.

JoAnna’s Soul Food is not affiliated with God’s Outreach Deliverance, but is its own entity.

“Our vision of this is to be more involved in the community,” King said. “We felt having a restaurant would definitely benefit the community.”

The restaurant was founded on the scripture of John 15:5, which reads, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

King said once God told her to open the restaurant, the process was fairly straightforward. She has 10 years of previous work in the restaurant business, and had to do some research, but putting the ideas together and building it until it became a physical location wasn’t difficult.

“The only thing that was probably the most challenging was to get the place ready for inspection,” King said. “It went really well.”

The meals will be homemade with recipes King learned from her grandmother. She said her grandmother called it “cooking with love.”

“Success is measured by having a meal with God and loving his people,” King said. “My hope for this restaurant is that souls will be saved for Jesus and that it will be a blessing for the community.”

Future plans for the restaurant include expanding to the younger demographic and hosting Christian bands and community talent nights, as well as supporting a shelter in the area.

“I have been all led by the Lord,” King said. “We give all glory to the Father.”