Feast of Reason: Soul of Cville Sunday Brunch
- Off-Site Event
Join us during Soul of Cville for Feast of Reason events honoring Chef Edith Hern Fossett
Event Highlights
Soul of Cville Sunday Brunch will take place at two locations: Order Up! Mobile Food & Catering (newly located at the historic Jefferson School City Center) and Royalty Eats on Cherry Ave. Soulfully delicious brunch offerings and drinks will be available for purchase at both partner restaurants.
Space is limited. Free advance reservations are required.
About Soul of Cville Sunday Brunch
This year's event honors Chef Edith Hern Fossett, the celebrated, French-trained, former head chef at Monticello. During the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, Fossett spent over six years in D.C., learning the art and science of French cuisine. Later, as a freed woman of color, she and her family resettled in the free state of Ohio, where they continued to help define American food culture for generations.
Soul of Cville Sunday Brunch 2026 is co-hosted as part of Monticello's Feast of Reason program, in collaboration with the Charlottesville-Albemarle Visitors & Convention Bureau and Discover Black Cville.
Edith Hern Fossett Portrait
As featured in Vinegar Hill Magazine, a recently commissioned portrait by D.C.-based artist Jabari Jefferson adds nuance to the life of one of Monticello's most well-known enslaved chefs.
About the Restaurants
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Hailing from the hometown of “Grande Dame of Southern Cooking” Edna Lewis, the family-owned Order Up! Mobile Food & Catering is proud to welcome guests to their new brick & mortar, indoor-outdoor location in Charlottesville’s historic, former Freedmen’s Bureau-founded school, the Jefferson School City Center. Their soul food inspired menu includes popular grilled selections like their famous “Cville Dog”, as well as Southern classics such as mac-n-cheese, down-home collards, fried fish and wings, mashed potatoes and gravy, and their signature sweet tea. Order Up! is where “food touches your soul.”
233 4th Street, Charlottesville, VA | Starr Hill Neighborhood
More info and menu: instagram.com/orderupmobilefoodcart -
Royalty Eats was born out of a love of cooking, baking, and community. Owner Nakesha White wanted to serve Soul Food with a dynamic twist. Her goal was to be in, of and for the community that she lived in. White began catering when she moved to Georgia to take care of her mother. When word spread that she was cooking, the orders rolled in.
820 Cherry Ave, Charlottesville, VA 22903 | Fifeville Neighborhood
More info and menu: royaltyeatsllc.com
About Feast of Reason
Gathering around the table to share food and ideas has long been a powerful tool for strengthening community. Monticello’s Feast of Reason uses specially designed conversation cards to invite people to eat together and discuss questions that shape our civic life.
The dinners Thomas Jefferson hosted were known for remarkable food and conversation. Inspired by this timeless tradition and the extraordinary legacy of enslaved chefs such as Edith Hern Fossett and James and Peter Hemings, Feast of Reason creates space for curiosity, listening, and meaningful connection.
