Husband-and-wife team Felicia Canada Rouldson and Donald Rouldson are bringing the tastes of Jamaica to Carondelet with their new restaurant, Caribbean Soul. Located at 6201 Michigan, in the former Rex’s Café space, the restaurant serves a combination of soul food and Jamaican specialties. Here’s what to know before you go.
The Menu
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The menu spans a variety of soul food and Jamaican dishes. Specialties include a stuffed grilled fish, a Caribbean cabbage dish, and curried goat, with meat that’s falling-apart tender. “It’s spicy and full-flavored, not hot,” Canada Rouldson says.
Fork-tender oxtails are another customer favorite. “We sold out of them at our grand opening,” says Canada Rouldson.
Wings are available in a range of flavors: Jerk, Caribbean, Curry, and Haitian. “Our jerk is a medium—it’s not real spicy,” says Canada Rouldson. “But the Haitian wings are really spicy and very popular.” Caribbean chili is made with meat, beans, veggies, and a just-right level of heat, with a slice of cornbread on the side. Shrimp or chicken can be added to a Caribbean pasta with veggies.
All entrées come with two sides, such as fried collards and cabbage, rice and peas, and fried plantains.
The full-service bar offers a range of cocktails, including the signature Jamaican Sorrel, a rum cocktail made from the fruits of the roselle plant, a hibiscus derivative that Jamaicans call sorrel. It’s long been served only on holidays in Jamaica, but due to its popularity, the drink is now enjoyed year-round.
Desserts include peach cobbler, a variety of cakes, as well as specialties, such as cake jars. Canada Rouldson makes the peach cobbler, while her daughter Tonnisha Lovelace bakes the rest including lemon, strawberry, and chocolate cakes, in addition to specials. “We sold out of her cake jars—cakes made in jars—on opening day,” Canada Rouldson says. “She loves to bake and makes all kinds of cakes. We’ll have a book of her cake creations here if people want to order a cake for a special occasion.”
The Atmosphere
Jamaican-inspired imagery brightens the restaurant both inside and out. On the corner restaurant’s limestone façade, artist Tony House created pictures of a blue sky and palm tree, as well as Caribbean-inspired figures. House’s artwork also fills the interior, including murals on the walls, bar surround, and other spaces. Even the pool table gets the Jamaican treatment, with its bright green, yellow, red, and black paint.
“When people come here, I want them to feel they’re at home,” says Canada Rouldson. “Our place has a warm, homey feeling. You come in, and you are welcomed.”
The restaurant seats approximately 40 people at tables and booths, where shimmery silver cloths are topped with placemats. Nine additional seats are at the bar, and there are eight seats outside, near colorful flower planters.
The Team
For Canada Rouldson, owning a restaurant has been a longtime dream. “I always wanted to own a restaurant,” she says. “I’m the mother of 14 children, so I had to cook every day. We added ‘soul’ to our name because I cook from the soul.”
Canada Rouldson’s husband, Donald Rouldson, who’s originally from Jamaica, specializes in the jerk seasoning. Although Canada Rouldson didn’t previously make Jamaican specialties, Rouldson says his wife “catches on very quickly,” he says. “She’s very good—trust me.”
Canada Rouldson also sees the restaurant as an opportunity to build community in other ways and offer more than food. “Right now, we’re selling Jamaican bonnets, handmade by Donald’s sister, who lives in Jamaica.” Hand-poured candles that she makes will also soon be for sale. “My daughter Rasha is a poet and will be writing messages in the candles,” Canada Rouldson says.
Another daughter, Rachelle Lovelace, helps in the kitchen as well. “She’s just like her mama,” says Canada Rouldson. “She loves to cook.”
