Jackson Free Press

Flowood residents Jordan and Paul Yamas will hold a soft opening for their new restaurant, The Hungry Goat (671 Grants Ferry Road, Suite A2, Flowood), on Wednesday, Jan. 9, with the grand opening taking place the following week on Monday, Jan. 14.

The Hungry Goat is located inside the former location of What’s Cookin,’ which closed on Dec. 25, 2018. The Yamases have been working with the previous owners Nancy Crisco and Janis Burgess to purchase the building since September 2018.

“Our restaurant is based on us helping to take the burden off of preparing meals,” Jordan says. “The idea is that everything is already prepared and only needs to be put in the oven when you take it home. It’s perfect for people who have had a long day at work and want to come home to a meal ready to put on the table. We make it so you can enjoy family time with food that has that home-cooked taste.”

The Hungry Goat will not have seating inside the restaurant, offering only carryout and catering. The carryout menu includes entrees such as poppyseed chicken, chicken pot pie, chipotle meatloaf, jambalaya and lasagna; appetizers like spinach-artichoke dip, garlic hummus, salsa and Texas caviar; and sides such as loaded potato casserole, cornbread dressing, green beans, creamed spinach and country potato salad.

The catering menu will feature items not available for carryout, such as salmon, street tacos and burritos. The restaurant will also have a special buffet option for catering.

Jordan moved to Flowood from Belhaven two years ago. Her husband has been living in Flowood and working in the food business for more than 20 years. Paul operated Primos Cafe on Lakeland Drive for 13 years and also ran the now-closed Que Sera Sera restaurant in Fondren. Jordan is a traveling chef who has worked at numerous restaurants across the Southeast and was once a sous chef for Tom Ramsey, who formerly owned La Finestra.

“We decided to design The Hungry Goat the way it is because we were looking for something new and different that we could contribute to the Flowood community,” Jordan says. “We have four kids and know what it’s like to be busy, but still want to be able to put a home-cooked meal on the table and make family memories together.”

The Hungry Goat will be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. on the day of the grand opening. For more information, call 601-919-3499 or find the restaurant on Facebook.

Cultivation Food Hall Announces Final Vendors

Cultivation Food Hall, which will be located inside The District at Eastover (1200 Eastover Drive, Suite 125), recently announced the final three vendors that will be part of the food hall when it opens this month, bringing the total to nine. The new additions are Ariella's NY Delicatessen, Bocca Pizzeria and Fauna Foodworks. The other vendors are Fete au Fete, Gold Coast Bar, Il Lupo Coffee, Local Honey, Poke Stop, and Whisk, a Creperie by La Brioche.

Alivia Ashburn-Townsend owns Ariella's NY Delicatessen, a New York-style deli, and has more than 15 years of experience in the restaurant industry. The menu will include traditional deli items such as pastrami, corn beef, frankfurters, matzo ball soup, cheesecake and more. For more information, read the Jackson Free Press story on the restaurant.

Cristina and Patrik Lazzari own Bocca Pizzeria with local chef Austin Lee. The restaurant will specialize in traditional Neapolitan pizza, which originated in the Campania region of southern Italy, and contains Roma tomatoes and mozzarella cheese made from water buffalo milk. The dish is a staple in Patrik's childhood home of Puglia, Italy, a region located on the “heel” of the boot-shaped country.

Fauna Foodworks owner Enrika Williams grew up in Mississippi and has 10 years of culinary experience working under famous chefs such as Emeril Lagasse, Mel Toldedo, Vince Hernandez and Richard Blais in Atlanta She also worked at The Greenbrier resort in West Virginia and was a sous chef under the late Craig Noone at Parlor Market in downtown Jackson. She has appeared on "Hotel Hell" with Gordon Ramsay and worked with celebrity chef Carla Hall at the James Beard House in New York City.

Cultivation Food Hall will be located on the ground floor of the BankPlus Building in The District at Eastover. The food hall will be open daily and will offer complimentary WiFi, a dedicated event space, and both indoor and outdoor seating. For more information, call 601-914-0800 or visit the Cultivation Food Hall Facebook page.

Crossroads Taking Music Video Submissions from Surrounding States

The annual Crossroads Film Festival, which will take place from April 11 to April 13 at the Malco Grandview Cinema (221 Grandview Blvd., Madison), recently announced that it is accepting submissions from artists located within about a three-hour drive from Jackson for its music-video block.

This opens the festival to acts from a variety of popular music destinations, including New Orleans, Memphis, Tenn., and Birmingham, Ala., among others. Submissions must be of original songs and can be no more than nine minutes long. The deadline is Friday, Jan. 18.

“We’re looking to bring in stories to Mississippi from all around for this year’s event,” Zach Prichard, a board member of the Crossroads Film Society, told the Jackson Free Press. “Our music-video showcase has been a very successful block in large part because the barrier for making a music video can be smaller than the one for making a film. While it’s still not easy, it can allow for more people to participate. It’s also something that crosses genres for both music lovers and filmmakers.”

For more information, call 601-345-5674 or visit crossroadsfilmfestival.com.