WS Chronicle

By Busta Brown

The Business of the Month is Simply Soul restaurant, 4339 S. Main St. in Winston-Salem.

I walked into Simply Soul restaurant in Winston-Salem, and the first thing I experienced was the beautiful and positive energy. The chef Calvin greeted me as if I was family. It was the first time we met, but his positive and inviting energy made it feel like we had known each other for years.

I told Calvin that I was there to interview the owner, Sonya Waddell, but I was an hour early. “I’ll give her a call to let her know you’re here. Have a seat and I’ll get you something to drink,”  he replied.

The second thing I noticed when I walked into Simply Soul is the menu of desserts; it was all of my favorites. Peach cobbler, banana pudding, pound cake, red velvet cake and honey bun cake, which I haven’t tried yet. I told Calvin I can’t wait to crush some banana pudding, and he replied, “I noticed it’s your first time here, and trust it won’t be your last.”

Then he greeted more costumers, and as they walked in, they greeted him by his first name.  I was glad to arrive an hour early; it was nice to see all that love. The owner of Simply Soul, Sonya Waddell, finally arrived. She walked toward me smiling, with her arms opened to greet me with a hug. “I’m sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. Brown, I got caught up in traffic.”  I-40 was pretty bad that day; I got caught up in traffic as well.

She noticed that I had my camera setup ready for the interview, so she jokes, “Give me a few minutes to make myself look cute.” As she walked toward the bathroom, she greeted customers by their first name. It was clear that the positive and beautiful energy I felt when I first walked into Simply Soul comes from the top. It’s contagious. Waddell, her employees and customers have a mutual love and respect for each other, it was a beautiful sight.

I also noticed something else: Because they have so many regulars, most of the customers didn’t ask for menus. Waddell and Calvin know what they want. That was very impressive. I looked around for the customers who were eating, and I saw the look of pure satisfaction on their faces. “We have dinner here two to three days a week. I can’t cook like this,” joked the wife and mother of two in one family. One guy said on Sundays after church he sits in the parking lot until they open. “I love the food here, and how they make us feel.”

Waddell finally sat down for our interview. “After we’re done, Calvin will make you a plate,” she said. I told her that I couldn’t wait.  “It’s important to me that the atmosphere is warm and friendly. Our customers are like family to us,” said Waddell. Everything at Simply Soul is home cooked, and the menu is truly Simply Soul. “We have yams, collard greens, mac ’n’ cheese, cornbread, cabbage, potato salad, fried, baked and barbeque chicken, pork chops, you name it, we have it,” Waddell said.

They also have one of my family favorites, ox tails. “We only have those on Sundays, and come early because they sell out.” I asked why the ox tails sell out. “We slow cook them with a touch of our secret recipe,” she said. She wouldn’t tell me what it is. Along with some good eating on Sundays, they have live jazz from 1-3 p.m.  “It adds to the already warm atmosphere. The people love it. We made sure we created something that will make people want to come back, and it’s working pretty good so far,” she said.

After I crushed my plate with meatloaf, yams, mac ’n’ chesse, greens and cornbread, I told Calvin he was right; I will be back.

Simply Soul is in Winston-Salem on 4339 S. Main St. and is open Tuesday-Friday 11 a.m.-7 p.m. and on Sundays from noon-6 p.m. See my interview on The Chronicle’s YouTube channel, Winstonsalem Chronicle.

Companies interested in becoming a Business of the Month should apply at https://triadminoritybusinessexpo.com/. This feature is sponsored by the Winston-Salem Branch of the NAACP, Winston-Salem Urban League, Triad Minority Business Expo and The Chronicle.