Read more about Evansville’s international community in the January/February 2025 feature story.
With a heart as big as her smile, Jaya Dodd has served food and fellowship to Evansville since relocating to her husband Timothy’s hometown in 1969.
It may surprise longtime patrons that, prior to moving to the U.S., Dodd had never cooked. She worked as a vice president at Bank of America in South Korea when she met Timothy in 1968. Later, the couple frequently entertained guests while Timothy ran for elected office, so Dodd began cooking South Korean food, calling her mother every day to ask questions. People loved it and told Dodd that she should open a restaurant. In 1980, she did.
“I always wanted to find my own world, create different things,” she says.
Before opening Jaya’s Authentic Food in 1980, Dodd taught cooking classes. She also studied differences in American and Korean cuisine to prepare and season healthier foods that Americans would enjoy — Americans use a lot of sugar and salt.
A devout Catholic, Dodd is a longtime worshipper at Sts. Mary & John Catholic Church. In the 1970s, she volunteered to cook for St. Mary’s booth at the West Side Nut Club Fall Festival. Her egg rolls and rice were a big hit — “People had never had egg rolls before!” she exclaims.
Dodd’s dishes aren’t the only draw at Jaya’s Authentic Foods. Since 1969, she has lit the thick candle she brought with her when she moved to the U.S. for every birthday celebrated at the restaurant, a tradition carried over from her homeland.
The candle symbolizes “everyone’s blessing,” she says. “I share my joy with everyone.”
After the deaths of Timothy in 2011 and their only child, Christopher, in 2017, the candle also gives her peace. “Sometimes, I light it, and I think about them,” she says.
Now 81, Dodd has quietly put her beloved restaurant on the market. Her closest relatives are her three grandchildren — ages 22, 20, and 16 — who live in Ohio. Contemplating retirement, Dodd says she may volunteer more at church.
“When you die, you’re not going to take any of this,” she says, waving around her hand for emphasis. “My life has been to serve.”
