Country fried steak and gravy? Southern soul food is coming to Taunton. What to know

TAUNTON — Ty Moore has a strong connection with soul food cooking. Not just because of her family’s Mississippi roots.  But also as a reflection of her personality.

“I’m big on being a light for people. I try and give off a warm aura. I’m always smiling,” Moore said.

Moore relates with soul food cuisine’s mission of bringing people together and spreading happiness.

“Food brings people together.  If I can do that with food and my smile, and my personality, so be it. Love transcends,” Moore said.

Moore intends on giving everyone the opportunity to “taste the love in the dish” when she opens up her Southern soul food restaurant, Nytia’s Soul Kitchen, in downtown Taunton late this summer.

What's on the menu?

The menu for Nytia’s Soul Kitchen will offer a variety of southern and soul food selections done with her own spin, bound to whet your appetite.

This includes fried chicken, chicken wings on top of waffles, fried catfish nuggets, fried and/or smothered pork chops, baked mac 'n' cheese, and country-fried steak and gravy as main entrees.

“The country-fried steak is going to be huge,” said Moore, referring to the amount of buzz she’s already receiving online and through her network of fans and customers.

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Customers will also get their fill of popular sides like candied yams, fried okra, green beans, mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas, collard greens and biscuits.

A signature dish at Nytia’s will be cornbread bowls.  Like a bread bowl, the cornbread bowl will be hollowed out and filled with your choice of meat and sides.

“This will definitely catch people’s attention,” Moore said.

Another signature dish will be fried green tomatoes as part of a BLT sandwich.

Moore will also explore her family’s cajun heritage with a few dishes, including shrimp po boys, as well as with weekly specials like dirty rice and jambalaya.

For desserts Nytia’s will offer an assortment of poundcakes, pecan pie, banana pudding and peach cobbler.

Moore said the menu isn’t set in stone and there’s plenty of room for evolution.

“We’ll see where the taste buds go and gravitate towards,” she said.

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Location

Nytia’s Soul Kitchen will be located at 73 Main St. in downtown Taunton, right next door to deMello Professional Building and just a few doors down from Talisa’s on Main wine bar.

The restaurant will be sit-in, with a capacity of 30-40, said Moore, but there will also be take-out available.

A dream decades in the making

Despite Moore’s passion for cooking, she spent the last couple of decades working as an accountant with different small businesses.

Her love for cooking for her family and friends eventually led to her starting a side gig as a self-employed caterer in 2015, cooking mainly Southern comfort foods.

Moore said she would post photos of her foods online and, little by little, “people would hear about my food” and “I got a lot of feedback and interest.”

She gained further experience over the last five years working in other restaurants doing food and meal prep, including Perfectly Flavah’d Café in East Bridgewater and Kinfolks Smokin BBQ in Taunton.

During the pandemic Moore went back to school and completed a culinary arts program at Southeastern Regional Vocational Technical High School in Easton.  Moore said her catering business doubled after getting her degree.

“I’m doing what I always wanted to do.”

Taking the next step

Moore started looking for a brick-and-mortar location last summer.  She was in communication with Taunton’s Office of Economic and Community Development to find a space to lease.

It took some time as earlier locations offered, Moore said, were either too big or too expensive, but in January she found the right space at 73 Main St.

“This is where I’m supposed to be,” she said, adding she feels both “totally blessed and overwhelmed” from all the buzz she has felt for her restaurant opening, but “she is grateful to the city for giving me this opportunity.”

Short and long-term plans

Mid-August is the estimated timeline for when Nytia’s Soul Kitchen opens.

Moore is looking into doing some pop-up promotional appearances for Nytia’s at city events.

Moore said she will be still do catering for events when Nytia’s Soul Kitchen opens. 

Sunday brunch is a goal of hers for her establishment, but that won’t happen right away, she said.

Moore is also contemplating having live musical entertainment at Nytia’s, specifically jazz and blues as tribute to her roots.

This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Nytia's Southern soul food restaurant is coming to downtown Taunton