Let’s “taco-bout” the new weekly event at High Dive. Costumes are encouraged. Speciality cocktails will be served. Cult movies and craft tacos: the best new way to spend a Wednesday night.
Pat Lavery loves cult movies. High Dive owner said they are the movies he and his staff grew up on. When actor Kevin Smith came to his venue back in May, it was surreal.
“He walked into my office and said, ‘Hello, how you doing? I’m very happy to be here.’ You know, like we were best friends,” Lavery said. “It’s not very often you get to see people that are on TV or movies and not just like in a ‘Oh, let me get your autograph’ type of situation, but in a real work setting.”
Around the same time, he said he realized he had quite a few open Wednesday nights at the end of the summer. Typically, he would have shown “Clerks,” his favorite cult film, before Smith performed to get Gainesville excited about the actor, but the schedule at High Dive was jam-packed at the beginning of summer.
Instead Lavery said he decided to pay homage to Smith by carving out those open Wednesday nights for the movies of his childhood.
This Wednesday was the first show. White Russians flowed at High Dive while “The Big Lebowski” played.
The audience was encouraged to come dressed as characters like The Dude, Walter and Donny. The best-dressed person was awarded a pair of tickets that can be redeemed at any High Dive show.
Lavery said a lot of work went into these Wednesday specials. He wanted to do something unique rather than showing the same blockbuster films constantly played.
He and his staff were really particular when picking all the right ingredients to make it a quality night because he knows people can watch a movie 10 different ways at home. He wants to get people to come out and have a good time and experience something different other than sitting on their couch.
So he called up Luis Agosto. Agosto is the sole proprietor of Soul Spice, a new small catering company in Gainesville dedicated to what he describes as a little movement.
“Good food shouldn’t be expensive, and it shouldn’t be difficult so keep it stupid, simple and fresh,” Agosto said.
The 28-year-old business owner dropped out of school a couple of years ago. Agosto said he kept changing his major because he couldn’t decide what he wanted to do. When he realized he was taking classes just to take classes, he decided college wasn’t for him.
Around the same time, his friend asked him to make the food for an event he came up with: House of Tacos. Agosto accepted because he’s always loved cooking. After that first event, he was hooked.
He’s been growing little by little since then under the business moniker, Soul Spice. Agosto said last November he decided to take a leap of faith, get his license and do it for real.
Agosto has a backyard garden. He always grows rosemary, sage and thyme. Habanero plants bloom alongside the herbs for hot sauces he makes himself, as does culantro, the heartier Caribbean version of cilantro, which he uses to season his rice.
Tacos were the best way to introduce people to his cooking because they’re easy to sell to people. According to Agosto, tacos are inconspicuous — most people think of a classic Mexican dish, but the chef contends that you can put anything on a taco as long as you make it with care.
Agosto’s personal favorite recipe is his pernil pork taco. He seasons a pork shoulder with herbs picked fresh from his backyard, garlic and onions. He roasts that for six to seven hours. Then, he completes his masterpiece with fresh chimichurri and sriracha sauces.
Agosto is always cognizant of customers who cannot partake in his prized pork. He said he always carries vegan options, which usually involve curries he creates. Right now, he has a Japanese jell curry.
He also serves rice bowls and burritos. Agosto said he’s planning to branch out into the sandwich industry soon. He’s also saving up for a food truck.
This is not the first time Lavery has employed Soul Spice. Agosto said the High Dive owner has been good to him.
Lavery has been putting on shows in Gainesville for more than 15 years under his company Glory Days Presents. He was working at High Dive before it was his venue. He made the place so great that it was crowned one of the “100 Greatest American Music Venues” by Consequence of Sound, a popular music blog.
Lavery is the kind of guy who looks out for his own. He talks about High Dive with a hint of a paternal tone. He never says “I” when he talks about all his hard work. Instead, he constantly credits the small core group of people he relies on.
When asked why he always uses “we,” he chuckled as he explained that the staff was a lot like a family, so much so that they spend more time with each other than their actual families.
“We work nonstop on this place, and our goal is to provide a really professional and quality experience for people that they might only otherwise see in like a bigger town,” Lavery said.
