Black Restaurant Week Expands To Florida For First Time

Miami FL

03 December, 2020

2:19 PM

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FLORIDA — In 2016, Falayn Ferrell, Warren Luckett and Derek Robinson established Black Restaurant Week in Houston. Four years later, the week-long marketing initiative has expanded to include 11 cities and regions throughout the country. One of the newest markets is the Sunshine State, Ferrell said. The statewide Florida Black Restaurant Week, which launched this year, kicked off Nov. 27 and runs through Sunday. When Black Restaurant Week first formed in Houston, the city already celebrated "a pretty robust" restaurant week featuring more than 200 businesses each year, Ferrell said. Too often, though, Black-owned restaurants were left out of the initiative. "We noticed a trend where a lot of the restaurants in our community weren't included," she said. Often, the business models of these Black-owned restaurants simply didn't fit with Houston Restaurant Week, Ferrell said. "Many of them had a more casual, counter-style approach. They weren't serving two-course, three-course fine dining." Black Restaurant Week was created to highlight the Black culinary industry in Houston, including Black-owned restaurants, executive chefs, food trucks and caterers, she said. "There's really a large gap in the culinary industry when it comes to the promotion of the Black culinary professionals in the industry." The week has been a success for these businesses, which they can participate in for free thanks to sponsorships, she added. "By and large, most restaurants at least report new customers coming in. Some have 20 to 40 percent sales growth from doing the week. We've even heard of increased traffic after the week is over. There's still some foot traffic and people say, 'Oh, we found you through Black Restaurant Week.'" When they first started planning Florida Restaurant Week, they initially focused on Central Florida. As the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting economic uncertainty hit, though, they decided to expand the event to the entire state. "This year, with everything going on with COVID, we wanted to make sure we could help as many businesses as possible," Ferrell said. "We saw the need and availability to do more regions (in Florida) this year." Nearly a dozen restaurants in each of Florida's major markets are participating this year and she hopes to expand into Pensacola and Tallahassee areas next year. "It's been a phenomenal first year and we're looking to grow on that," she said. Elan Doeman opened The Squeeze Juice Bar in North Miami Beach in January. "Right at the start of everything, at the start of the COVID madness," he said. The restaurant, which focuses on fresh juice and Mediterranean cuisine, struggled at first, Doeman said. Word-of-mouth and social media shares helped save the business, he added. "The business picked up. If it wasn't for people coming in through word-of-mouth and social media, we wouldn't be open at all." The team behind the Squeeze Juice Bar in North Miami Beach, which specializes in fresh juices and Mediterranean cuisine. The restaurant has seen increased foot traffic thanks to Florida Black Restaurant Week. (Elan Doeman)When he learned about Black Restaurant Week through Instagram, he knew immediately he wanted to be involved. He's glad that he signed up for it. "Any type of exposure is great," Doeman said. "Many people don't know we're a Black-owned business because we're in a predominantly Jewish area, so they're surprised. And we've had quite a few people find out about us through this week." Many of his regular customers have learned about Black Restaurant Week through him and, as a result, are checking out other Black-owned restaurants in the area, he added. Ernisha Randolph, owner of Shuckin & Jivin, also signed up for Black Restaurant Week hoping it would help increase traffic to her cajun-themed takeout restaurant featuring shrimp, fish and Southern homecooked classics. Shuckin & Jivin, a cajun-themed takeout restaurant featuring shrimp, fish and Southern homecooked classics, is participating in Florida Black Restaurant Week. (Courtesy of Sweet Butter Hospitality Group)The restaurant opened in June 2018. They'd built a following through a series of pop-up dinners leading up to their opening, but Randolph said she struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since it's a takeout restaurant with no drive-through, at the start of the pandemic, many of her customers were opting to pick up food at restaurants with a drive-through, she said. Eventually, she began offering curbside pick-up, "which kind of saved us in the beginning," she said. As coronavirus cases rise throughout the state and across the country, Randolph "fear(s)..what's to come." She added, "It looks like we're on the brink of another shutdown." But Black Restaurant Week has given her hope. "Programs like Black Restaurant Week are such a blessing," she said. "It's such a blessing to have an organization willing to promote and spread the word. It makes us hopeful." Randolph has already met numerous new customers who learned about Shuckin & Jivin through Black Restaurant Week. "Every little bit helps and I'm grateful for it," she said. The following restaurants are participating in the first Florida Black restaurant week: Central Florida 1000 Degrees Pizza, 13599 W Colonial Drive, Winter GardenChef Shonari Services, OrlandoJustin's Caribbean Fusion Restaurant, 6700 Conroy Road, OrlandoKalalou Caribbean Bar & Grill, 5160 S John Young Pkwy., OrlandoLoyd Have Mercy Restaurant, 3434 S Washington Ave., TitusvilleNessas Food BBQ Restaurant, 14 W McKey Street, OcoeePlates on Deck, private chef serving the Orlando areaSeanna's Caribbean Soul Food, 719 Good Homes Road, OrlandoJacksonville A1 Foxy Lady Café and Catering, 1837 N Pearl Street, JacksonvilleAnnie Ru's Carryout & Catering, 2851 Edgewood Ave. N, JacksonvilleCelestia's Coastal Cuisine, 6765 Dunn Ave., JacksonvilleCookbook Restaurant, 1827 N Pearl Street, JacksonvilleCool Moose Café, 2708 Park Street, JacksonvilleCrazy Crab, 3610 Blanding Blvd., JacksonvilleFunnel Cake Queen, 9501 Arlington Expressway, JacksonvilleIcecapade Frozen Treats, 1833 N Pearl Street, JacksonvilleJ.R. Dexter Food Services, offers catering in the Jacksonville areaJazzy's Restaurant, 901 King Street, JacksonvilleLittle Black Box Baked Goods, 6110-1 Powers Ave., JacksonvilleMama Boys Food Co., 1855 N Main Street, JacksonvilleMixed Fillings Pie Shop, 2251 Oak Street, JacksonvilleMr. Potato Spread, Inc, 9501 Arlington Expressway, JacksonvilleShut Em Down Authentic Southern Restaurant, 6315 San Juan Ave., JacksonvilleSweet Mama's, 1527 Cesery Blvd., JacksonvilleSweet Spot & Urban Lounge, 157 E 8th Street, JacksonvilleTeam Love Seafood, 2220 County Road 210, JacksonvilleThe Avenue Grill, 818 A Philip Randolph Blvd., JacksonvilleThe Gumbo Man, 15411 Main Street, JacksonvilleSouth Florida Ali's Roti Shop, 303 S State Road, PlantationBurgerhive, 618 NE 3rd Ave., Fort LauderdaleConch It Up Soul Food, NW 17th Ave., MiamiDukunoo Jamaican Kitchen, 316 NW 24th Street, MiamiFood Dude Fresh Jerk Grill, 2600 S University Drive, MiramarHoney Uninhibited, 1777 SW 3rd Ave., MiamiiSeefood Miami, 16194 NW 27th Ave., Miami GardensManjay Restaurant, 8300 NE 2nd Ave., MiamiPerry's Wings, 10817 NW 27th Ave., MiamiPretty Healthy LLC, 17560 NW 27th Ave., Miami GardensRosie's, 439 NW 4th Ave., MiamiShuckin & Jivin Restaurant, 4759 NW 167th Street, Carol CitySmoothie Express, 9440 NE 2nd Ave., Miami ShoresThe Squeeze Juice Bar, 16171 Biscayne Blvd., North Miami BeachTropical Oasis Express, Miami-area food truckTroy's Bar-Be-Que, 1920 S Federal Hwy., Boynton BeachVYBE305, 486 NE 167th Street, MiamiWorld Famous House of Mac, 2055 NW 2nd Ave., Miami Tallahassee Great Rising Vegan Doughnuts, pick-up at Railroad Square, 618 McDonnell Drive, TallahasseeOlean's Café, 1605 S Adams Street, Tallahassee Tampa Bay 7th + Grove, 1930 E 7th Ave., TampaAva's Lowcountry Cuisine, 112 Flagship Drive, LutzBradley's Family Restaurant, 7613 Causeway Blvd., TampaCabana Sands, 4300 6th Street South, St. PetersburgCopa, 1047 Central Ave., St. PetersburgEggs Up Grill, 3920 US 301, RiverviewHip Hop Crab, 4924 E Busch Blvd., TampaIsland Flavors and Tings, 1411 49th Street S, GulfportKay's Kitchen, 11124 N 30th Street, TampaLoaded, 1901 Drew Street, ClearwaterM&R Café Southern Cuisine, 3320 E Osborne Ave., TampaMr. B's Southern Cuisine, 3401 N Nebraska Ave., TampaShnookum's BBQ, 1575 S Ft Harrison Ave., ClearwaterThe Cookie Monster Cookies, offers pop-ups and catering in the Tampa Bay area