OPOTX

Against incredible odds, Karim Webb and Edward Barnett own three Buffalo Wild Wings franchise locations and are preparing to soon open a fourth. The incredible odds include starting a business in a working- and lower-class part of the Los Angeles area that struggles with gang crime.

You might think it’d be tough finding traditional African ingredients in the cream-and-butter capital of the world, but Niang has no trouble. “It’s not cheap,” she says, but it’s doable, and she’s managed to offer up some special treats, like exotic sodas flavored with baobab and hibiscus. Serving African food in the French capital can be a bit tricky, though, since you have to tone down the spice to appeal to Parisian palates, but her Senegalese clients will miss the heat if it isn’t there, so she deftly negotiates by providing tiny pots of spicy sauce that can be used to punch up the flavors if need be. And that’s a huge part of her business: More than 75 percent of France’s immigrants from developing countries are coming from Africa according to an OECD report, and while North Africa accounted for the most emigrants — 2.3 million of France’s residents came from Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco alone — Senegal, Mali and the Ivory Coast each have yielded tens of thousands of newcomers.

—–Fiona Dublin (writer)

Daily Dose

Welcome to Sip & Savor, Chicago’s favorite coffee spot. We bring you the finest certified fair trade coffee from around the world, as well as a wide selection of teas, mochas, lattes and blended drinks . Breakfast is no secret around here, with a plethora of menu options—in addition to delicious pastries and small bites from local bakeries. That makes us “globally local”, and we’re all about it! At Sip & Savor, there’s really something for everyone.

With locations in Bronzeville, Hyde Park, Rosenwald and SouthLoop, Sip & Savor captures the positive energy and excitement of Southside Chicago. We’re proud to be among the restoration of historical buildings and development of new businesses, as this brings new neighbors to our growing community. Come visit us—we know you’ll savor every last sip.

Who doesn’t love a good barbecue? The next time you’re in Baltimore, Maryland, be sure to check out this new Black-owned family restaurant. It’s called The BBQ and they serve delicious barbecue favorites like ribs, pulled pork, pit turkey, baked beans, and their infamous BBQ Sandwich.

The Grub Factory, based in Baltimore, Maryland at 1210 North Charles Street, is a Black-owned vegan restaurant. Founded by three entrepreneurs, Hurani Ame, Heru Mertief, and Imhotep Fatiu, the restaurant serves gyros, reubens, pepper steaks, shrimp salads, and curry “chick’n” — all vegan.

Nelwa’s Gelato is inspired by the abundance of fruits and spices in Tanzania. We produce unique flavours such as lavender, baobab and cinnamon. Our products have a lower % of fat than industrial ice cream, the main flavor ingredient shines through (4 to 8% compared to industrial ice cream’s 10 to 20%). We satisfy a growing need for flavourful, Afro-centric, locally sourced, healthy, and delicious gelato that is unlike anything in the market. We are both a B2B and a B2C business, serving whole sale : 5 kg tubs incorporated in hotels and restaurants menu’s and retail : 1kg, 250 grams and popsicle through our outlet.

We have won several entrepreneurship awards; the Tony Elumelu Tanzanian awardee in 2015, the Total Tanzania start-up of the year 2016, the top 50 brands in Tanzania by Tanzania Private Sector foundation and Tanzania Bureau of Standards 2016. We also won the Tanzania Leadership award, entrepreneur of the year 2016 AND the Young Innovator in Agriculture award in 2016 by Iren.

Our name, Neo, means “gift” in Tswana and this encapsulates our view of coffee as a resource that should be shared and cherished. Our fine coffee is grown in Africa, to be consumed by the African consumer.

We aspire to be the brand across Africa that provides a ‘third space’, where customers can escape, meet like-minded dreamers and create great things. Neo is thus less about a cafe chain, but more about building communities around powerful ideas, with strong links to entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation.

We are Cafe Neo; celebrating the return of coffee to its African roots, one cup at a time.

La Gastronomie Pizza is Madagascar’s first ever pizza joint. Now it is also the country’s largest fast food outlet. Owner Chef Mbinina worked hard to build his brand in a country where there are no fast food brands.

Mbina began his interest in food while still in high school. He worked as a dishwasher on weekends and learned how to cook by watching the food channel. He soon realized that pizza was an easy food to make.

His family helped out when he first started. In the beginning, he only had 5 different pizzas on the menu. Now his menu includes 10 different pizzas, plus ice cream. He has expanded his business to 27 outlets, and 700 employees across Madagascar. On weekends, his restaurants can serve up to 50,000 customers.

The menu at La Gastronomie Pizza has also expanded to include hamburgers, french fries, and chicken kebab sandwiches. A Turkish chef came to the restaurant from Turkey to train employees on how to make the kebab sandwiches.

Now, La Gastronomie is the most recognized brand of pizza in Madagascar. Although there is some competition now, they still have the strongest brand. Mbina says his ultimate goal is to expand across Africa.

Edose Ohen, a Nigerian-American entrepreneur from Houston, Texas, has been shaking up the pastry industry ever since he opened Glazed The Doughnut Cafe – the area’s first Black-owned 24 hour donut cafe. He started the business back in 2014, and now he has two locations in the city serving handmade glazed donuts, glazed sandwiches and gourmet coffee.