Felix’s BBQ With Soul, a Southern California restaurant serving barbecue and soul food, is getting ready to reopen in Oceanside at 223 N. Coast Highway.
The company recently submitted a liquor license application for the new location, which will replace the former home of Kettle on Coast. Owner Felix Berry tells What Now that the restaurant is in the final stages of pre-opening and is currently waiting on final inspections. Berry could not provide an exact opening date, but hopes to hold a soft opening and grand opening in October 2026.
Kettle on Coast announced its permanent closure on Instagram, explaining that the restaurant had not received enough initial support to continue operating. The brunch restaurant opened in Downtown Oceanside, focusing on high-quality ingredients, local vendors, and hospitality. Felix’s BBQ With Soul recently found the space and plans to open as soon as the remaining inspections are completed.
The new restaurant will mark a return to Oceanside for Felix’s BBQ With Soul, which previously operated at 3613 Ocean Ranch Blvd. The company was forced to leave that location after its lease ended. It currently has locations in San Marcos and Carlsbad, offering dine-in, takeout, delivery, and catering at both sites.
Felix’s BBQ With Soul serves barbecue alongside Southern and Louisiana-inspired dishes, including baby back ribs, beef brisket, pulled pork, fried chicken, catfish, shrimp, jambalaya, gumbo, oxtails, and shrimp and grits. Customers can also order sandwiches such as the Jimmy Lee’s Pulled Pork Sandwich, Catfish Po’Boy, and Shrimp Po’Boy, along with sides including collard greens, baked beans, red beans and rice, mac and cheese, and cornbread.
The restaurant’s story dates back to Berry’s youth, when he worked at a barbecue restaurant near his childhood home and learned about the importance of smoke in barbecue. After working in restaurant management and operating other businesses, Berry eventually opened Felix’s BBQ With Soul in memory of a friend named Ruth, who had dreamed of opening a larger Southern food restaurant. The Oceanside reopening will bring the concept back to the city where that journey first began.
