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Photo by Tai's Captures/Unsplash
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This summer, Soul Taco had a five-day residency at Kabana Rooftop that led to the idea for Jingle Belle. (Photo by Eileen Mellon)
Trey Owens is a holiday fanatic.
“I’m all about it,” says the Richmond native and Soul Taco co-owner. Asked about his favorite Christmas movie, a long pause follows. It’s clear that choosing one isn’t easy.
“Oh, man,” he says, “It’s been '[A] Christmas Story' for quite some time … but I’ll have to go with 'Jingle All the Way.' ”
And while trees adorned with ornaments, spending time with family and festive celebrations may feel far away and foreign due to the pandemic, Owens, along with fellow owners Nar Hovnanian and Ari Augenbaum, has been in full holiday mode these days, planning take-and-bake cookie kits, Instagram-worthy libations and festive dishes.
On Nov. 4, the three plan to debut Jingle Belle: A Woke Holiday Story, a pop-up with both in-house dining and takeout options that celebrates inclusivity and cultural traditions, inside Belle.
“We want everyone to feel seen and heard,” says Owens. “We’ll have Kwanzaa elements in there, Christmas elements, Hanukkah — just doing it all in a very 2020, woke way.”
The idea for the pop-up was born earlier this summer. During a five-day residency at Kabana Rooftop, the Soul Taco owners noticed that the downstairs restaurant, Belle, was temporarily closed. They took a leap and reached out to the landlord about utilizing the vacant space.
“We thought, let’s do something awesome down there,” says Hovnanian. “People aren’t going out as much, so we thought, why not create an interesting experience?”
Through the pop-up, the team of friends aims to use food and drink as a vehicle to spark joy and celebrate diversity.
“Food brings people together better than anything else, so it will be fun to fuse different cultures and traditions people have during the holidays,” Augenbaum says.
For the trio, diversity has been a part of their relationship from the beginning.
“Trey’s Black, Ari is Jewish, I’m Armenian,” Hovnanian says. “We learn from each other every single day, and that's super important and definitely a part of who we are. It’s magic once you understand where people are coming from and gain a little perspective into their lives.”
Jingle Belle guests can expect a lineup of fun, experiential holiday-themed dishes, gift-wrapped bites, DIY gingerbread houses and prix fixe family meals. Augenbaum says the menu will elevate customary dishes, while still paying homage to their roots. A traditional side dish of yams and marshmallows will be turned into a savory yam gnocchi, and the classic cranberry sauce will be joined by foie gras.
“We want the food coming home with you to still embody all of the elements of the holiday spirit,” Augenbaum says. “It’s about taking some of these dishes and moving them into a direction people will not have expected or seen before.”
A priority for these dishes is making them portable. With the pandemic in mind, the focus is on curating items that can withstand being packed and transported home.
“We’re really focusing on to-go presentation, to-go meals, and things that travel well and are meant to be eaten 30 to 45 minutes later and have the ability to be preheated with the integrity not lost,” Hovnanian explains.
The pop-up also presents a new, exciting challenge for the team. Since Soul Taco's debut two years ago in Jackson Ward, their identity has been linked to tacos, gaining them a faithful following that led to a second spot in Shockoe Bottom, an appearance on “Diners, Drive-ins & Dives,” and taking the top spot on a list of Best Tacos in the State by MSN. But the Jingle Belle event will be a taco-free affair.
“It’s our first kind of step outside of the world of tacos. You will not see a taco on the menu at all, promise,” Owens says. “It’s an opportunity for us to prove that we can do it. I think we’ll really be able to show once for and all we are not a one-trick pony.”
As for the decor, expect Jingle Belle to be decked out from floor to ceiling and the staff members, or “cast,” to be rocking full festive attire.
“We want it to be one of those places people can walk in and go three or four times and not see everything,” Hovnanian says. “Soul Taco is always looking for ways to bond with community and include people, but everything’s so crazy right now. … We wanted to created a space that everyone would feel connected to.”
Jingle Belle will be open from 5 to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, with Sunday brunch hours to be determined. The final service will be New Year’s Day brunch.
