Black Celebrities Who Own Restaurants and Food Franchises

African-Americans have always been pioneers when it comes to delicious food. More Black celebrities are starting to own restaurants and franchises.  These Black celebrities who own restaurants have found success over the years in the culinary business.  

Tabitha Brown

Tabitha Brown has turned her love for vegan food into the restaurant Kale My Name. It opened in Chicago in 2020 and has received rave reviews. The restaurant offers vegan options like buffalo cauliflower, fried macaroni and cheese balls, and Italian sandwich wraps. Another great thing about this restaurant is that it’s affordable, which is great in this economy. 

Kandi Burress

Kandi Burress has opened two successful restaurants. The first, The Old Lady Gang, was a sensation the moment it opened. The menu is based on recipes from her aunt’s and her mother, Mama Joyce. The second, Blaze, which is named after her son, is an upscale steak house, and that, too, has seen success. 

Ayesha Curry

Steph Curry’s better half has brought fine dining to the BBQ scene with her restaurant, International Smoke. The restaurant combines BBQ with different international flavors and smoking techniques. It also has great vegetarian and vegan options. The restaurant right now is only in the Bay Area and Las Vegas. 

LeBron James

King James got into the restaurant business back in 2012 when he opened Blaze Pizza. James invested $1 million in the franchise but couldn’t get too involved with the pizza restaurant in the beginning because he was under contract with McDonald’s at the time. That has changed in recent years, and now he is more involved. The pizza chain has restaurants in Chicago and Miami.

Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan’s Intercontinental Steakhouse has been labeled as one of the best restaurant experiences in the country. Travel Noire said about the restaurant: “At Michael Jordan’s Steak House, he and the staff elevate the art of steak preparation to a level they proudly refer to as ‘steakmanship.” Here, the commitment to culinary perfection mirrors Jordan’s dedication to excellence in every endeavor.” If that doesn’t make you want to take a visit, I don’t know what will. 

Cam Newton

Cam Newton may be more known as a football player and podcaster these days, but now he is known as a restaurateur. Fellaship.ATL was the idea of Newton and his father, Cecil, who drew up their background of great Soul Food and Southern cooking in their hometown of Atlanta. While their restaurant has a casual feel to it, the dress attire isn’t. Business casual attire is a requirement, and no athletic gear is allowed, so you have to dress to impress in order to enjoy their menu of fried chicken, blueberry and lemon waffles, and lamb chops. 

Issa Rae

The award-winning actress opened Hilltop Coffee and Kitchen with co-creators Yonnie Hagos and Ajay Relan. Their idea was to unite people through their shared love of food and culture. The atmosphere is super casual, and so is the food, with chicken and waffles and breakfast sandwiches on the menu. Additionally, more recently Rae opened opened a restaurant called Somerville in Los Angeles, located in the View Park-Windsor Hills neighborhood.  It’s been described as a a supper club.  Somerville like most of the Issa Rae business ventures is another opportunity to pay homage to Blackness in Los Angeles. 

Shaquille O’Neal

We all know about Shaq’s involvement with Papa John’s Pizza, but did you know that he also opened Shaq’s Big Chicken? Shaq has opened several of his Big Chicken franchises nationwide with its down-home menu of great chicken sandwiches and satisfying sides like coleslaw and mac and cheese.

Pharrell Williams

Next time you want to experience real upscale dining while visiting Miami, make reservations at Pharrell Williams’ Swan and Bevy Bar. The concept came from Williams and his partner, Chef Jean Imbert. The restaurant combines European and Fusion flair, serving such dishes as Lemon Garlic Chicken, Blueberry Filet, Spicy Vodka Veal Parmigiana, Chips & Caviar, Hamachi Crudo, and Everything Bagel Parker House Rolls. They also have their chocolate soufflé drizzled with house-made Nutella, which is to die for.