The story of the first soul food & seafood on wheels opens at Neabsco Park

Haniyyah (Kay) Vickers knows how to meet the need, and puts in the work to make it possible.

As a longtime nurse, she was able to treat others with aplomb. However, there was yet another need that she believed had to be fulfilled in the Woodbridge area, and worked on creating that vision. On Saturday at Neabsco Regional Park she met with the PW Perspective to talk about how she became the creator of Kay’s Citrine Soul Food, LLC, the town’s only mobile soul food & seafood provider.

“My vision behind this was to bring soul food to the area,” says Vickers. “We would drive out to Maryland or Fredericksburg to find good soul food, and that’s a 45 minute to one hour drive. So, I spoke with my fiancee and decided to create our own business. We always would cook soul food and host events at our home, so we took that step and got a great response as a result.”

Saturday’s event was a festive atmosphere that featured face painting and a DJ blasting dance music and keeping the crowd engaged. Vickers discussed what it took to make the preparations. “It was exciting, a little stressful. We’ve learned a lot because when we got out here we didn’t know that we needed a permit. The ranger was so helpful and provided us with a day permit, that was the biggest hurdle. Everything else we planned for it.”

“We started operating on May 1. We’ve done local events and are used to a large crowd. The business started in 2018 but we recently got the food truck. It’s really excited to be able to move around and serve so many different people.”

She emphasized some of the challenges that they face with owning a food truck. “The biggest thing is safety, so we have to make sure everything is in containers. We keep everything refrigerated until it’s ready to bring out. We were here since 8am this morning. It’s a lot of time and money invested, but it’s a great thing.”

What is it like to have a business coming out of the pandemic? “Since the pandemic, I’ve noticed a difference in the way people are coming together. Everyone is so helpful. Whenever I struggled with something, people will say, let me help you out. I think each of us learned something about ourselves, and have come closer as a community.”

Speaking of support, her father even drove up from Augusta, GA to help with promoting and get whatever supplies were needed to attend to the drove of customers.

Each Saturday they will be at the Dumfries Commuter Lot at the intersection of Rt. 234 and Rt. 1 as they find a permanent location.

Her fiancee Vincent Cook, shared Kay’s sentiments about entrepreneurship. “It feels good to be your own boss, you can work when you want to. I love it, it’s something that you want to get into.”

Find out more about their business on Instagram and Facebook.