‘Soul food at its finest,’ new restaurant opens in Gastonia

The owners of Ruby’s Soul Food & BBQ, a new restaurant in Gastonia, want customers to feel like Ruby herself is in the kitchen cooking.

“We want it to be as fresh and homemade as possible,” part owner Jessica Johnson said.

The restaurant, which sells Chicago-style barbecue and soul food, is part of a larger family of restaurants based in the windy city.

Johnson’s father, Henry Henderson, opened the first Ruby’s Soul Food in Chicago 2010, named after his mother Ruby Henderson, and expanded the business into four locations. After his passing in 2020, Johnson’s brother, Lawrence Henderson, took the business over and encouraged her to open one herself.

At the time, she and her husband, Terrance Johnson, had recently moved to Charlotte in search of warmer weather and to focus on opening a new ministry. Alongside Terrence, Jessica Johnson is a pastor and parent. She is also a practicing counselor and now, a restauranteur, she said.

The task of opening a restaurant in 2020 seemed insurmountable, but in recent years, Johnson said she warmed up to the idea.

When the former site of Mr 3s Crab Pot Bar & Grill at 2431 E. Ozark Ave. became available for rent, Johnson said she jumped on the opportunity.

On Saturday, April 12, the Johnsons opened Ruby’s Soul Food & BBQ for the first time and had a line through the doors, she said. The following day, the restaurant sold out of food and closed early.

“We want to thank the community for embracing us,” Johnson said. “We are so grateful for God and for the people.”

The menu at Ruby’s includes several soul food and barbecue staples, made with Chicago-style sauce and featuring rib tips and hot links, she said. Her favorite combo on the menu includes hot links, rib tips and two pieces of bread.

Selling food that tastes like love and is made with love is what sets Ruby’s apart, according to the Johnsons.

“There are tons of soul food places, there are. We want to stand out,” Jessica Johnson said. “Ruby’s food is soul food at its finest.”

The restaurant is open 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday.