“Small businesses are still in recovery mode because of a two-year long pandemic. It is our responsibility to ensure they are not facing these hardships alone,” says Falayn Ferrell, Chairwoman of Feed the Soul Foundation and co-founder of Black Restaurant Week. “Last year's program was extremely successful in the revitalization of Black-owned culinary businesses, and we are more than excited to expand our services to support additional marginalized communities. We are deeply committed to providing solutions to issues faced by restaurateurs such as human resources, marketing, and operations.”
"The Restaurant Business Development cohort provides restaurant owners six months of consulting, a financial stipend and continuous training. In the East Bay, Oakland’s popular Trinidadian spot CocoBreeze Restaurant has joined the development program, along with 28 other culinary businesses across the country."
" Through the support of the Grubhub Community Fund‚ the presenting program partner, Feed the Soul Foundation’s grant program will award 30 small businesses with $10,000.00 financial stipends and six months of business development services as they prepare to navigate the post-Covid world and the ever-changing consumer dining trends."
" Take a vacation to the Caribbean courtesy of Chef Ann (Annabelle Goodridge), who opened Cocobreeze mid-pandemic, bringing a menu full of traditional dishes to the Bay. Goodridge’s culinary career began in Trinidad and Tobago, where, beginning at 12-years-old, she helped out with her mother’s catering business. Now, she’s working with her daughter, Merissa Lyons, to bring authentic Caribbean dishes to Bay Area residents who haven’t had many options when it comes to that arena. (Her daughter also runs a vegan bakery in the same space.) The herbaceous jerk chicken is the go-to order, as is anything that comes wrapped in roti."
