Sofusion Cafe’ Opening This Weekend in Hollins Market

Restaurant Sofusion Cafe’ will open this Sunday at 6 S. Poppleton St. in Hollins Market. The two-story restaurant space is in a free-standing building that has been vacant in recent years.

Sofusion was previously called Campbell’s Cafe when it was located at 740 N. Fulton Ave. in Sandtown-Winchester. Campbell’s Cafe closed last year as owner Denise Butts prepared to make the move to Hollins Market. Butts said she was looking to expand and get into a neighborhood with a larger customer base. She is excited about the future of the area with the growing UM BioPark, which is adjacent to Sufusion, and additional growth in the neighborhood.

Butts runs Sofusion with her sister Kimberly Kirby, and Chef Andrew Levy, who grew up in Jamaica, consulted with the team on the menu. The menu is a combination of Southern American classics inspired by Butts’ and Kirby’s late mother, who passed away from a rare form of cancer last year and Jamaican dishes. Butts said her mother was passionate about cooking and inspired her to get into the food industry. There will be a banner in her honor hanging at Sofusion.

The menu will remain the same all day at Sofusion and the hours will be 9am to 7pm. The dishes will include chicken with red velvet waffles, shrimp and grits, salmon with eggs, loaded baked potatoes, wings, Jamaican dishes with jerk and curry, and vegetarian and vegan selections. Sofusion will also serve specialty drinks made from fresh fruits.

Butts took on a renovation of the building which she said was about 80 percent mechanical upgrades and the rest cosmetic improvements. The first floor has the kitchen and the second floor has the dining room which seats about 25. Seats will be separated for social distancing in the opening months of Sofusion.

Sofusion will eventually allow its second floor to be rented out for private events. Butts said she is hoping the new location will be ideal for catering gigs with its proximity to the University of Maryland Baltimore.

Butts said her and Kirby faced many obstacles to get Sofusion opened, but they had a lot of help from great people along the way. She thanked her former customers from Campbell’s Cafe for their support during the transition and said they are excited about the reopening.

With COVID-19’s continued impact, Butts said, “food makes people happy,” and said she hopes Sofusion will be a positive force during this difficult time.

About the Author: Kevin Lynch

Founder and Publisher of SouthBmore.com, longtime resident of South Baltimore, and a graduate of Towson University. Diehard Ravens and O's fan, father of three, amateur pizza chef, skateboarder, and "bar food" foodie. Email me at Kevin@InceptMM.com and follow me on Twitter at @SoBoKevin.