They say everything moves slower in the islands. But that does not include chef Jonathan Wright Jr., who’s been serving Caribbean fusion out of his 434th Street restaurant and catering group since 2020. From his first jobs in fast food, to early mornings at City Market, to long days in a manufacturing plant, Wright’s been on the move since he was a teenager.
The hard work paid off on January 7, when he officially launched his Caribbean concept in a permanent Dairy Market location. Last month, the chef took some time out of his busy day to tell Knife & Fork all about the move, his family’s culinary traditions, and what’s next.
Knife & Fork: How has business been in your first few months?
Wright: It’s been really consistent for the last five weeks. I’ve seen some great new faces along with my regulars from the last three years. I started this concept at the City Market in 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic.
Where were you before that?
For the past 20-plus years I’ve been in a lot of kitchens around Charlottesville. I started when I was 14 or 15 in fast food restaurants and just worked my way up the charts. After fast food, it was Red Robin and Ruby Tuesday. Then I moved to Farmington Country Club and Boar’s Head. Then in 2019, I took a job in advanced manufacturing at Emerson. I was succeeding in that, but it got slow, and I was laid off.
That’s an impressive resume.
I’m mostly self-taught, but there were most definitely some great people along the way. The other piece of my background is that my grandmother was the head chef at Martha Jefferson House in the ’80s and ’90s. She also worked at a restaurant called La Hacienda in Charlottesville. According to some people, she was the first woman head chef in any kitchen in town. She died in 1990, three years before I was born, but we always had that family tradition of gathering in the kitchen—from her and from my other grandmother.
What got you into Caribbean food?
I was born and raised in Earlysville. My dad’s side is from West Virginia, and my mom’s is from here. I saw that we didn’t have that type of cuisine here, and I knew I was capable of cooking it well. Caribbean flavors and cuisines inspire me. I love traveling to the Caribbean, and every time I go I discover something new. I took the Caribbean main dishes and a lot of the curries and island spice and incorporated that with Southern American side dishes like mac and cheese and greens. That’s where the “Virginia twist” on my sign comes in.
How does the Dairy Market scene compare to what you had been doing?
It’s actually the same type of setting but with no 4am wake up calls and a parking lot. The move wasn’t really in my plans, but people wanted it. Demand was high, people got familiar with the food, the catering grew, I contracted with UVA for some things and met a lot of good people there. Everyone kept asking: “When are you going to have a location?” Dairy Market reached out and wanted to know if I wanted to be a vendor. We had a nice sit down, I cooked some food, and they loved it. But yeah, it’s a great environment. This is my first place, but they treat me like I am home. The owners and other vendors have greeted me with nothing but love and respect.
What are some of your favorites and bestsellers?
The seafood dishes—those are my favorite. The coconut curry seafood platter consists of whatever fresh fish I have as far as market price and availability. Right now, it’s red snapper, which is pan seared with shrimp and crab cake, mixed with the coconut curry sauce and accompanied by the island rice. But the number-one seller is oxtail. I’ve run through about 140 pounds of oxtail in a six-day week, and that was during the slow season. People also love the jerk dishes.
How is the oxtail prepared?
We season the oxtails and marinate them overnight, pan sear them, then after that, we slow braise them in the oven. Then I make a nice savory coconut gravy—a brown gravy with coconut and pineapple. They go absolutely perfectly together. That’s served with plantains and red beans and rice.
What’s the future look like for 434th Street and Chef Wright?
I’m very passionate about what I do. This is just a bonus; the thing that built the company the most is the catering. We did six weddings last year and want to do more this year, but it’s sporadic. At the Dairy Market, I have a staff of four, one full-time and three part-time. They’re all from different nationalities, genders, and ages. They have so much versatility. We’ve become a really strong team.