Episode #150 | Kiana Jackson

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Founded in 2018 by Chef Jacquelyn “Jackie” Jackson and her family, Jackie’s Place grew from a home dining table into a South Bay institution. Their authentic soul food and traditional barbecue began as a catering service and eventually led to the opening of their first storefront, Baby Jackie’s, in San Jose Japantown. Following a brief pause during early pandemic restrictions and a fire at the original site, operations expanded into an 8,900-square-foot location on North First Street. As the enterprise scaled, Chef Jackie’s daughter, Kiana Jackson, and the entire family operated all-hands-on-deck—with roles spanning executive operations, kitchen leadership, mixology, and pitmaster duties.

Kiana Jackson grew up on the East Side of San Jose before attending Clark Atlanta University, earning a degree in speech communication and theater arts and moving into stage and event management. After working in regional corporate event leadership across the country, the onset of the 2020 pandemic brought her back home to channel her corporate expertise into the family business. In 2025, the family expanded downtown with a second location in the SoFA District on South First Street. Operating in the neighborhood brought Jackson into close alignment with neighboring Black-owned businesses, including Nirvana Soul, Ashy Aromas, and St. Clair Market. These neighborly connections laid the groundwork for Soul Street, a collective formed to highlight, centralize, and celebrate Black ownership and cultural presence in the SoFA District.

As an extension of this mission, Soul Street has begun building a foundation and scholarship fund to support long-term neighborhood visibility and local community initiatives. Through events like From Ivory to Onyx, the collective aims to create sustainable platforms for local entrepreneurs, artists, and community organizers, while raising funds for scholarships and community partners. Proceeds from these events directly fund higher-education scholarships for local high school students and support the distribution of meals to unhoused people in and around San Jose through partners like Vibes and Smiles.

To mark the launch of this vision, Soul Street is hosting From Ivory to Onyx, an outdoor, immersive dining experience that takes over South First Street. The gathering features a collaborative five-course meal prepared by Chef Jackie, Jalen, Chephew, Ware, and Chef Leilani with pairings from The Continental, live painting by Tyler Gordon, Derrick Bell, and Akeem Raheem, and live music benefiting local scholarships.

In this conversation, Jackson talks about transitioning from corporate event management to the family business, how her time in Atlanta shaped her vision for Black-owned corridors, and the collaborative work behind Soul Street and From Ivory to Onyx in downtown San Jose.

From Ivory to Onyx takes place Sunday, September 6, 2026, from 5 to 10p on South First Street. Tickets and additional details are available at soulstreetsj.com.

Website: jackiesplacesj.com | soulstreetsj.com

Instagram: jackiesplacesj | soulstreetsj

Photos Provided by Kiana Jackson