Jerk Shop Go closes

Jerk Shop Go has been through several changes during the five years the business has been open, but now the Caribbean restaurant is ceasing operations. "We will be closing our doors as of June 23, effective immediately," owner Kadejia Berkley told SBJ.

Berkley originally opened Jerk Shop Go in a small space downtown at 213 S. Fifth St. in March 2020 and almost immediately had to shift to take-out orders due to the state prohibiting indoor dining during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Less than a year later, she opened a second location at White Oaks Mall, and in October 2021 the downtown restaurant moved a few doors down to 219 S. Fifth St., doubling its space.

Jerk Shop Go was named the best new business downtown in Illinois Times' 2020 Best of Springfield.

Berkley told SBJ that she had been considering closing the business once the lease was up in October, since she is getting ready to start her second year of law school and her father has retired and moved out of state. But in the meantime, not having working air conditioning accelerated the decision to close.

"The recent heat wave has made it simply unsafe and inhumane for our staff to work in conditions that are not habitable," Berkley said. "Unfortunately, the building we occupy is no longer suitable for operating a restaurant, and the property owner has declined to make necessary repairs while we are still tenants. As a result, we have mutually agreed to part ways."

According to Sangamon County tax records, the property is owned by TDL Properties One, LLC. The Illinois Secretary of State website lists Terrence Dawson as the manager of the limited liability company.

Berkley said she considered moving to a different location but decided it wasn't feasible. "We simply don’t have the time or energy to engage in a move," she said.

The location at White Oaks Mall closed previously after about a year of operations. Berkley said she originally signed a lease for the mall location because she was told the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency would be opening within a matter of months. However, that didn't happen, and she said "the natural foot traffic at the mall just wasn't sufficient to maintain a business."

Berkley is no stranger to the restaurant industry. A triplet, she originally lived in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago and her family opened a restaurant there in 2014. Along with her sisters, Kendra and Kenya, Berkley later attended Western Illinois University and the three young entrepreneurs opened a restaurant in Macomb after finding that the dining options near campus were limited.

That location closed after the sisters graduated in 2019, and Berkley moved to Springfield to start an internship at the Statehouse. In the meantime, the sisters focused on retail sales and were able to get their products placed in a number of grocery and convenience stores across the Midwest, including several locations in Springfield. But when Berkley had a chance to open another restaurant, she said she couldn’t pass it up.

"Once I arrived I fell in love with the city and thought that one of our restaurants would do well here. I was right, the city loved us and we loved the city," Berkley said. "Even through COVID our business was able to maintain. We will miss our customers and staff more than anyone could imagine."

Berkley said she's created a GoFundMe to support the staff as they transition to new jobs and hopes that will "help bridge the gap for them during this time."