When it comes to access to capital, it’s definitely not a level playing field for Black-owned restaurants — although people are striving to introduce more equity (in both senses of the word) to Black entrepreneurs looking to grow in the restaurant industry. Heinz and The LEE Initiative have come together to establish a grant program specifically targeting Black-owned restaurants. The Black Kitchen Initiative focused on the South when it launched in 2020 under the auspices of Southern Restaurants for Racial Justice, a LEE Initiative program founded by Atlanta restaurateur Anne Quatrano, Cheryl Day of the erstwhile Back in the Day Bakery, baker Sarah O’Brien of Little Tart in Atlanta and Nashville writer/baker extraordinaire Lisa Donovan. The program has recently expanded to a national scope.
After granting more than a million dollars since 2020, the initiative is seeking applications from Black-owned food businesses seeking to move their operations to a higher level. Locally, Radical Rabbit and Lighthouse on the Lake are past recipients of grants, and it would be wonderful to see more Nashville-area Black-owned restaurants benefit from this sort of support.
Grant applications are being accepted at the initiative’s website through Monday, Sept. 16. They’ve already extended the deadline, so don’t dawdle if this is something you’re interested in. Even if you are not a Black food worker, feel free to help spread the word to any eligible local businesses you can think of. Let’s bring some of that delicious ketchup money to Nashville!
