Newtown's history told through comfort food served up at Miss Susie's

SARASOTA, Fla. - Miss Susie’s Newtown Kitchen food truck is well known on the streets of Sarasota, partially because chef Golden Monix plates his food from the heart.

The menu is sure to make anyone hungry; collard greens, mac and cheese, fried chicken, oxtails and cornbread.

"We are just trying to bring that southern hospitality back, southern comfort food," Monix explained. "We make them from scratch. It’s not the Jiffy Cornbread mix."

But Miss Susie's is more than a food truck. It's a partnership. 

It started as a dream of the late Steve Seidensticker, a Sarasota restaurateur and philanthropist who had the vision to breathe new life into the city's first Black neighborhood of Newtown.

Golden grew up in Newtown. He remembers a time when businesses thrived.

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He is part of the generation working to preserve Newtown's history while modernizing it for generations to come. After working with kids for 15 years with the Sarasota County Boys and Girls Club, he wants a better future for them.

"It’s very important to redevelop that Newtown district, especially right there on MLK Way," said chef Golden. "To give people a sense of hope that they could one day own their own building or be entrepreneurs themselves."

Aside from serving delicious meals, Miss Susie’s Newtown Kitchen is also serving up opportunities for the youth of Newtown. 

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"That’s one of our missions, is to make sure the kids in the Newtown area have different opportunities in the hospitality management, culinary industry. That’s one of our goals is just to teach them and show them," said Golden. 

They’re working with the Sarasota County School District to give students the opportunity to learn the ins-and-outs of the business, while working on the food truck. 

Sales from the food truck are going right back to the work-education partnership program. Their goal is to match students to culinary jobs in the area. 

"For us, it’s extremely important we get the students involved and show them the paths and how to go down those paths to have careers in hospitality and entrepreneurship as well," said Andrew Grossman, the program's operations director. "Our belief is if we invest in the people then it will be their ideas and efforts that will rebuild that corridor."

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The next step is to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Newtown, which will serve as a training ground for those interested in culinary careers.

Chef Golden hopes his cooking not only fills stomachs but inspires others to achieve their dreams. 

"When you’re feeding someone you’re making them happy," he said. 

For more information or to see Miss Susie’s Newtown Kitchen schedule, visit https://www.misssusiesnewtownkitchen.com/