Blake and Aniqua “Nikki” Montcalm have been through a lot since meeting and falling in love years ago as students at the Le Cordon Bleu culinary school, including health issues and raising two young kids, one with special needs. So the teamwork needed to launch a successful business together was second nature to them.
“Teamwork makes the dream work,” said Nikki of the Smokey Mango (instagram.com/thesmokeymango) pop-up they launched last year in Atlanta, with a debut appearance at Sceptre Brewing in Oakhurst, with dates since at events and breweries across metro Atlanta. “We play to our strengths.”
The Smokey Mango is a culmination of the Montcalms’ extensive experience in the kitchens of some of Atlanta’s top fine-dining restaurants (Kyma, Floataway Cafe and Intercontinental Hotel Buckhead for Nikki and 4th and Swift, Cakes and Ale, Iberian Pig, Aria and Bread and Butterfly for Blake). They also worked as private chefs for rapper T-Pain and for his mother’s metro Atlanta catering company, Goldfire Private Chefs.
The couple launched a meal prep and delivery service because it afforded them more creative control and freedom. When the pandemic brought business to a halt, they scrapped those plans in favor of the Smokey Mango pop-up food concept.
Credit: Courtesy of the Smokey Mango
Credit: Courtesy of the Smokey Mango
The menu marries the French, Southern and soul food techniques and influences the couple picked up through their careers with the flavors and ingredients of the food Nikki grew up eating in her native St. Thomas.
“My grandma raised me up on eating good Island food,” she said.
The unifying theme for all the dishes is also part of the pop-up’s name: Everything on the menu, from the vegetables to the meat, is smoked (the mango is a nod to Nikki’s Caribbean background).
The pop-up’s signature dish is the soul food empanada, with a filling of baked macaroni and cheese topped with toasted bread crumbs, cane sugar candied yams, vegan collard greens and smoked turkey neck. Another top seller is the smoked ribeye steak hoagie available two ways: classic with sauteed peppers, onion and mushrooms, or island style with pineapple and teriyaki sauce. Both come topped with melted smoked gouda cheese and garlic-thyme aioli.
The menu also includes smoked wings and several other smoked hoagies and empanadas, including a few vegetarian options. Though the core items stay the same, some vegetables used in the hoagies and empanadas change seasonally, and the pop-up offers empanada specials, including the Everything Lox with smoked salmon, cream cheese, everything spice, scallions and capers.
Credit: Courtesy of the Smokey Mango
Credit: Courtesy of the Smokey Mango
The Montcalms take care to point out that they use halal meat, raw cane sugar and unbleached flour in their recipes.
“You can eat healthy and still have comfort and flavor,” said Blake, who credits changes to his own diet with helping him get back on his feet after a health scare.
A year in, the couple is a well-oiled machine — Blake writes up the prep list and handles the grilling and smoking, while Nikki makes the dough and fillings for the empanadas.
In addition to their pop-up appearances, the couple recently launched a ghost kitchen from 5:30-9:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights in the Adobo ATL space at 4086 Covington Highway in Decatur. They’re also working to grow the catering and private chef side of their business. Though they have their eye on purchasing a food trailer or truck, for now they’re looking to connect with guests and build a following.
“We just want to be known,” Nikki said. “We’re good chefs, and we have the resume to prove it. We’re not just another wing and cheesesteak spot, we’re a whole different type of experience.”
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