HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Black Restaurant Week in Huntsville celebrates more than 100 Black-owned restaurants in a wide array of styles, from food trucks to vegan specialties to soul food and sweets. This year's theme is “Eat. Post. Repeat.", and includes everything from marketing and education events to a Black Bar Crawl. Black Restaurant Week is your chance to try something new, revisit your favorites, and support small businesses.
Not only are these black-owned businesses expecting more business, they're also hoping for more recognition. Regale Cupcakery owner of Travonee Simelton says, "I expect us to be slightly busier than what we normally would be, which we're very, very welcomed, hoping for, to be completely honest."
"We're American-owned businesses that are being celebrated right now due to the struggles that we've been through... and our community is helping us,", explains Forest Wilson, owner of Chef Will the Palate. "In allowing us to share what we've created and bring it into these communities and have a place in these communities, we can collectively move forward."
It's also Pride month, and Travonee Simelton is also a member of the LGBTQ+ plus community, making him a queer business owner as well.
"It's showing that we're just like everybody else, that we can run our businesses we can, you know, still reach the community and just, you know, bring joy to people... while also just doing cupcakes," says Simelton.
And just because there are struggles that come with both, Wilson (Chef Will) will says take advantage of those differences. "Take advantage of it because you're like the only one in your lane doing what you do. It makes you rare in your city or your town and what you're bringing to the table is a nice part or a great part of the collective of your city or your town or your community even."