"CocoBreeze marks something of a comeback for its chef, Annabelle Goodridge — aka Chef Ann — who ran a Trinidadian restaurant called LaBelle’s in Berkeley, on Adeline Street, during the late ‘90s and early 2000s. Mostly, though, Goodridge has done catering for most of her life, going back to the early ‘70s when, as a 12-year-old girl, she would help out with her mother’s catering business in Trinidad and Tobago. Her most recent company, Makin Style Catering, catered events for big clients like Kaiser, Genentech, and UC Berkeley."
"This new Caribbean restaurant and bakery in East Oakland reps Trinidad and Tobago hard, with its menu of traditional Afro-Caribbean dishes like jerk chicken or curry goat over pelau rice. All entrees that can be served stuffed inside a Trinidadian roti wrap — one of the world’s great street foods, and a relative rarity in the Bay Area prior to Coco Breeze’s arrival."
" Black Restaurant Week, an annual celebration of African-American, African and Caribbean cuisine nationwide kicked off in the Bay Area on Friday, Aug. 21. With COVID-19 in mind, this year's restaurant week won't include its usual live events and in-person dinners, but the show must go on. "
" This event is a reminder to everyone that support goes beyond a single moment of social change or Black History Month, says John Paul Zapata, the director of public relations for tourism bureau Visit Oakland. And for others, it’s a nudge to try new restaurants and new foods. “I’ve been eating inside my bubble,” Banks says (sound familiar?). “But this week I’m going to go to drive around, to try a new place every day that I can.”
"... many folks are left wondering how they can help causes of racial equality and support the Black and Brown communities. To that end, several publications and writers, both local and beyond, have developed to guides to Black-owned bars and restaurants in the Bay Area."
