From cell to sales

Before Steven “Stevie” Gilliam was serving up meals at a brick-and-mortar restaurant, he was hustling his signature spicy bowls straight out of the trunk of his car in 2023.

Today, Stevie’s Kitchen, also known as Stevie’s Jail House Kitchen, has a storefront in Riverview, where Gilliam sells food he first came to know while serving time.

Gilliam was released from federal prison in 2019 after convictions on drug and gun charges. After three separate sentences totaling nearly 10 years behind bars, Gilliam has turned his painful past into motivation. His restaurant’s playful slogan doubles as his personal motto: “You ain’t got to go to jail, come to Stevie’s.”

The menu at Stevie’s Kitchen features prison-inspired creations, including “fed” fried rice, loaded jailhouse pizza, jail nachos and sweet and spicy bowls.

Customers say the unusual concept delivers on taste. Kevin McCaster, who has visited the restaurant twice to try different menu items, said the meals have “all the flavors you ever want when you eat a meal. For real. Definitely satisfied.” 

He added one suggestion for potential diners: “Order ahead.”

Gilliam says he takes the prison connection seriously, buying core ingredients sourced through inmates’ prison commissaries. He sells hard-to-find commissary brands like Bushy Creek and Cactus Annie’s, securing items like The Whole Shebang chips, summer dogs, jalapeno short cheese, refried beans and pouches of mackerel and yellowfin tuna.

Because commercial food vendors don’t supply these specific products, Gilliam said he sends money to contacts inside prisons who purchase the goods and ship them out. The process is expensive, with bags of chips costing him up to $17 each and selling for $25.

“The items, we use them for almost everything, but you make it a different way, and it tastes so different,” Gilliam said. “When it’s called a jailhouse pizza, it tastes like a pizza. When you do a nacho, it tastes like a nacho. It’s the same ingredients, but it tastes so different. It’s wild.”

The restaurant has also added traditional menu items, including fried chicken, fish, fries and macaroni and cheese.

Gilliam has carried the prison theme beyond the food.

Inside the restaurant’s kitchen, he built a replica of a prison cell within an unused walk-in freezer. The space contains bunk beds, mattresses, a clear plastic television, a fan and prison-issued headphones.

Gilliam said the cell serves as a personal reminder to stay focused, noting that spending time in the room helped keep him and a friend from returning to prison.

“Stevie’s isn’t just a business, it isn’t just food, it isn’t just a logo. It’s a movement. It’s a place where people can eat, learn, grow and believe that no matter where they come from, their future can be greater than their past,” Gilliam said.

“It’s an acquired taste. And I knew if I could get this on the streets, it would go crazy. The reason I love the food is because it reminded me of something — of what not to go back to.”

Gilliam works alongside two partners in the restaurant: Deion “Chef D” Woodard of Cluster Buster’s and Ricardo Swait of Sw8 Creates. Together, the trio praises God as the driving force behind their business venture and personal paths. They also credit their success to complementary strengths, noting that where one partner may lack a skill, another excels.

Woodard earned an associate degree in culinary arts from St. Louis Community College at Forest Park in 2018. After working in fast food and selling food in high school, he enrolled in college.

“I really only ever went into the culinary program just so I could tell my daddy I went to college,” Woodard said.

After immersing himself in the culinary environment, however, he fell in love with the craft and decided to pursue it as a career.

Woodard previously owned and operated Cluster Buster’s locations across St. Louis and one in Atlanta before stepping away temporarily following the deaths of his father and brother.

“Stevie always says he don’t sell food, he sells vibes. I’m learning that from him as far as: you gotta sell yourself, sell your brand,” Woodard said. “I take pride in cooking. I like cooking, I like seeing people eat, I like seeing them smile. … As long as my bills paid and my kids good, I’m cool. I’m not trying to be the richest chef in the world.”

Swait works as a full-time special education teacher while developing global fusion meals for the menu. Drawing inspiration from Jamaican, Mexican, Indian, Asian and African cuisines, he specializes in cross-cultural creations like jerk chicken tacos, oxtail tacos and curry chicken empanadas.

“I grew up like a fat kid, so I always liked food. … Now I’m a little more health-conscious, but I fulfill my love for food by feeding other people,” Swait said. “To me, it’s like I’m in a cooking show all day. I used to watch ‘Chopped,’ and I feel like I’m on ‘Chopped’ all day. So for real, I’m living a dream.”

First-time customer Jacob Potter stopped in while working next door after seeing the restaurant’s menu items. After ordering Stevie’s cheeseburger, Potter said the customer service was “pretty good so far, fairly quick.”

Gilliam’s business has expanded beyond the restaurant. Following attention on social media, he began shipping orders out of state, including to Colorado, New York, California and Wyoming.

He also has organized out-of-town pop-up events designated as “Stevie Tours,” where he cooks meals, sells commissary product bundles and sells his book, From JailHouse Noodles to Nachos To Net Profit: How I Went from Cell To Sales.

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