By Cady Inabinett 

Following more delays, Montevallo’s newest restaurant Soul Spot has announced a new expected grand opening date of Saturday, Oct. 9. This new date comes after months of delays, with the restaurant originally slated to open in February. More recently, Soul Spot has failed to open on two other projected opening dates in August and September. 

Previously, Soul Spot owner Eboni Williams attributed the delays in opening on issues with contractors during the project, saying she had to, “change contractors in the middle of the project and basically start over.”  

Additionally, Williams had said, prior to the expected August grand opening, that waiting for county inspections to be completed lead to delays as well. 

At the Sept. 13 Montevallo City Council meeting, Adele Nelson, executive director of the Montevallo Chamber of Commerce, provided an update on Soul Spot’s progress. Nelson announced that the restaurant would not be able to open on their September opening date because, “they don’t have enough people to work.” 

She shared that they had some recent interest in jobs, seeming optimistic that the restaurant would be fully staffed in time for their Oct. 9 grand opening date. 

Soul Spot owners announced via a Facebook post on Sept. 13 that their original Calera location will be permanently closing. The post said, “we have been working diligently to get our Montevallo store opened up, so now that we’re finally able to open, we have ultimately decided to close Calera permanently effective immediately.”  

Staffing issues seemed to have plagued the restaurant’s Calera location as well, with the post saying that the location had been “consistently short staffed for some time now,” and that closing the location would be, “the best decision for us.” 

The post also announced that the restaurant’s lease would be turned over to Kool Runnings Jamaican Restaurant. Additionally, they announced, “We also will be putting Soul Spot on the road with our new food trailer and Catering Van.” These catering options will be available for booking starting next month. 

Comments on the announcement post remained mostly positive. Many commenters mourned the loss of the Calera location, but said they would support the Montevallo location—such as commenter Alex Lightsey, who wrote, “We have enjoyed your Calera location and will definitely continue to be a customer in Montevallo!” and Temika Varner Winters, who said, “Can’t wait for y’all to open. Montevallo is not far for me!! You know I will be there every Friday!!!!” 

The restaurant’s Montevallo location Facebook page has not updated since March, with the first post on the page announcing that the grand opening would be on March 27. The only place where Soul Spot’s updated opening date has been announced is in the Montevallo Chamber of Commerce’s monthly publication, “Chamber Chatter.” 

Soul Spot will be located at the corner of Main Street and Middle Street, sharing a plaza with CVS and Pizza Hut. 

Soul Spot’s owner Eboni Williams was contacted for comment regarding the restaurant’s new opening date, but did not respond.