About Us

We create a new flavour of Caribbean street food that leaves an ever lasting taste but also a social impact.

A stepping stone for all care leavers to be who they want to be.

Smoke N Jerk Home Page

Our Story

Smoke N Jerk was founded in 2016 by Tobias James. A concept that started in Tobias’s home kitchen, where he would experiment with flavors and textures and even cook for his friends. Mashing up homemade cocktails, smoky bbq flavored wings and blending his very own jerk marinade that sent him back to the motherland of Jamaica – forever reliving memories from his trips there with his foster mum. 

Later on his close friend Jameil Grant partnered up with him, and they both combined their Jamaican heritage, foster care background and their passion for music, Caribbean culture and good food! Within that they created a new style of jerk, and conceived the Smoke N Jerk of today.

From 2017, Smoke N Jerk started to pop-up in different locations such as the Lambeth Country Show, London Jerk Fest, Hackney Fashion Festival, The Cross Platform launch party, Gay Pride and many more. “Then we really started to make our stamp in the industry.” From being on the television program Extreme Food Phobics and Goggle box.

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Our Goal

Smoke N Jerk was created to be a social enterprise that combined fresh Caribbean inspired street food with a social impact. Our goal was for it to be a vehicle for other care leavers to identify what personal success looked like, and to involve individuals from diverse backgrounds and communities – bringing them together to create something new. 

We aim to invest a portion of the profits back into communities and provide workshops on how to cook and employment opportunities for care leavers especially. 

‘I wanted to create a business that served both myself and others. After witnessing my friends and family go to prison, nor having the access to opportunities that provided a door to success – I wanted to change that. 

I wanted to change the narrative, change the stereotype that people seem to have on kids who are in the system and create a change, create a better future and provide second chances.’

Tobias James