Chef Jay John never imagined when he arrived to prep food at Dat Fire Jerk Chicken on the morning of Saturday, April 20, that a fire would destroy his restaurant.
The blaze began in the Jamaican restaurant’s smokehouse and quickly got out of control. John had just enough time to get his employees and patrons out of harm’s way before the fire swept through the popular jerk joint on Northside Drive.
Rather than closing for good, John set up Dat Fire’s food truck in the parking lot in front of the burned-out remains of his beloved restaurant. There, he continues to serve plates of jerk chicken, oxtails, jerk cheese fries, and jerk tacos, among other fan favorites.
Sitting in the shadow of Mercedes-Benz Stadium to the north, Dat Fire has been a staple on Northside Drive for nearly a decade. The surrounding communities of Castleberry Hill and Vine City and students attending colleges to the south of the restaurant in Atlanta University Center (AUC) have shown up to the food truck daily in support of John and his employees. John graduated from Clark Atlanta University in 2001.
John said he and his restaurant aren’t going anywhere. He’s waiting for final inspections on the building before moving forward with the demolition and construction of the new and improved Dat Fire Jerk Chicken on Northside.
A GoFundMe campaign to offset rebuilding costs has raised close to $6,000, but much more money is needed to keep operating the food truck until John can reopen Dat Fire as a restaurant again.
“We have received overwhelming support from the AUC, alum, and the community. They have sent words of encouragement. They have donated to our #DatFireWillRiseAgain campaign. They show up to the food truck to purchase lunch and they book us for food truck activations and catering,” John told Rough Draft.
Support for Dat Fire has also come from other restaurants, including Nando’s Peri-Peri Chicken. Two metro Atlanta locations of the South African restaurant chain will open soon in Dunwoody and Peachtree Corners.
“The Atlanta-based PR company that represents Nando’s Peri-Peri learned of our story on the news. Nando’s is a cultural destination restaurant like us, and their team wanted to do something to support us as we work to rise again,” John said. “As an homage to Atlanta and the city’s original area code, the decision was made that they would buy out ‘404’ meals for the community to enjoy.”
On Tuesday, May 7, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., Nando’s will cover the cost of 404 meals served from the Dat Fire food truck during lunch to benefit the fire-ravaged jerk restaurant. Any meals not sold during the fundraiser will be donated to Atlanta nonprofit PAWKids, which provides food and after-school enrichment programs for children and their families, most of whom live in the neighborhoods close to the restaurant.
Despite not knowing how long the restaurant rebuild will take, John remains optimistic about the future of Dat Fire, given all of the community support he and his employees have received since the April 20 fire.
“Their support has ensured that we haven’t missed a beat since the fire, and as a proud CAU alumnus, we continue to invite the entire AUC and the community to reach out in ways to support us as we rebuild Dat Fire.”
Find the food truck at 226 Northside Drive in the Dat Fire Jerk Chicken restaurant parking lot. Catch the food truck traveling around Atlanta and the AUC. Follow on Instagram for menu and hours updates.