The Phoenix food scene just got a bit hotter with the expanding presence of Hot Sauce and Pepper, a family-owned food truck. Tajia and Aaron Junior, the husband and wife team behind the vegan soul food mobile eatery, began offering their Caulifyah dish to other restaurants, with Sugar Jam the Southern Kitchen being the first to put it on their menu, as reported by Phoenix Business Journal. Despite the absence of retail availability, the pair have ambitions to stock it in stores like Sprouts and Target.
However, not long ago, the Juniors faced a setback when a U-Haul containing their equipment was stolen, dealing a significant blow to their operation. According to an ABC15 interview with the couple, the community's response was swift and generous, enabling them to recover by providing equipment and funds to purchase a new food truck. As AJ Diggs expressed, "In one day to lose everything and then turn around and have more than we even lost in the first place, you know, it's been a really humbling experience."
The duo's commitment to flavorful vegan food began when Tajia started meal-prepping vegan dishes for a friend's mother with cancer, and it evolved into their catering business which launched in 2019. With an initial focus on dishes like deep-fried cauliflower, the menu has since flourished to include vegan sliders, wings, and more. Solid support from business accelerators including ASU Edson E+I's Prepped program and Local First Arizona's We Rise Business Accelerator has helped the Juniors rebound after a dip in revenues, as mentioned in an article by the Phoenix Business Journal.
The community went beyond financial backing; the surge of local help manifested in practical ways. "Immediately, we had people in the community calling us... telling us they had extra fryers, they had extra equipment. So, we were able to just gather things from different people that were there for us," Tajia Diggs told ABC15. Together with their four children, who also run a vegan vending machine business, the family is dedicating their efforts toward the grand opening at the Churchill.
