Black-owned eateries to get big exposure in ‘Wing & Mac Smackdown’

BEATING BREAST CANCER—KEESHA MARCELLE BENNETT, AFTER BEING DIAGNOSED WITH BREAST CANCER IN 2021 AND OVERCOMING IT IN 2023, IS ONE OF THE CONTESTANTS IN THE “WING & MAC SMACKDOWN,” APRIL 27.

Event is Saturday, April 27, in the Hill District

In 2021, many people in the Pittsburgh area and beyond were battling COVID-19.

Pittsburgh native Keesha Marcelle Bennett was battling breast cancer.

Getting that diagnosis wasn’t exactly the plan Bennett set for herself after moving back to Pittsburgh from Philadelphia with her husband, Tyrell Bennett. But she told the New Pittsburgh Courier that through it all, she and her husband stuck with their original plan in launching their food business, “PeacefulPlatez.”

Two years later, in 2023, Bennett got the greatest news—”I’m all clear, I’m in remission,” she told the Courier of her breast cancer diagnosis.

Bennett can’t wait for Saturday, April 27. That’s when the “Wing & Mac Smackdown Part II” competition will take place at St. Benedict the Moor Center, 2900 Bedford Ave., Hill District. Doors open at 5 p.m.

The first “Smackdown” was held in 2016 by Briana White of Breelicious Bites. White has also written a host of restaurant reviews for the Courier over the past six years. She said she brought the event back, in collaboration with Z Best BBQ, to highlight this new iteration of Black-owned eateries that may not get the publicity as their White counterparts.

BRIANA L. WHITE, FOUNDER OF THE “WING & MAC SMACKDOWN” SERIES.

In addition to Bennett, the other 13 owners/businesses participating in the competition are: Olga George, Squeaks Eats, Kim Allen (Fat Rai’s), Star Williams (Vibe Bar), Tiona King, Kamahlai Stewart (House of Soul Catering, LLC), Leon McIntosh (McIntosh Eatery), Monica Johnson (Foxy Frans Catering), Stripes Williams (M&M Royal Touch), Kemi’s Kitchen & Katering, Shakale Williams (KaBoozy Delights), Jay Dix, and Art & Soul Cafe by Gist Catering.

A $500 cash prize will be awarded to whomever has the best wings, and also the best macaroni and cheese. A sponsorship from Catapult Greater Pittsburgh helped to make the monetary awards a reality. Five celebrity judges will make the decisions — Mike Dean (WAMO-FM), Carleen King (Carmi Restaurant), Chef Claudy Pierre, Roxanne Easley (Roxanne’s Catering), and Mikey Hood (KDKA-TV). The event’s emcee will be Mister Rice, with music by DJ Hollywood.

Black-owned businesses have a hard time staying above water in the first place, but the restaurant business is even tougher. Generally, restaurants have low profit margins, and studies show it takes at least two years for a new restaurant to see a profit. Labor and food costs are what ends up making the restaurants go under.

[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”It’s definitely about supporting Black-owned businesses,” White told the Courier. “Perhaps they don’t have the money for marketing to be able to buy ads in papers,” or they’re getting overlooked by food-based publications in the Greater Pittsburgh area. “When the restaurant list comes out, a lot of times it’s not filled with a lot of Black and brown spaces,” White said.[/perfectpullquote]

Pittsburgh, unlike a Cleveland or Atlanta, isn’t filled with a lot of Black, sit-down-style restaurants. You’d be lucky to count to 10 in that category. And when there are grants made available to Black-owned restaurants, Pittsburgh is often left off the list. As an example, the U.S. Black Chambers Inc., in partnership with Grubhub and the USBC Community Economic Development Corporation, in 2022 announced it would provide $500,000 in grants to Black-owned restaurants, but the focus was more on eateries in Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, although restaurants in any city were able to apply.

Pittsburghers are more familiar with the Heinz company, now known as Kraft Heinz. That company donates up to $1 million annually to be distributed to roughly 60 Black-owned eateries across the country, through a partnership with the LEE Initiative and Southern Restaurants for Racial Justice, called the Black Kitchen Initiative. In its first year, 2021, five Black-owned restaurants in Pittsburgh received grants, including Carmi (Carleen and Michael King), CobblerWorld (Terina Hicks), Eminent Hospitality (Chef Claudy Pierre), Roxanne’s Catering (Roxanne Easley), and Wings & A Prayer. In 2022, just one Pittsburgh Black-owned eatery was awarded a grant, Everyday Cafe (John and Cynthia Wallace), in Homewood. The same in 2023, as just one grant was awarded (Wild Rise Bakery).

It’s unclear if there will be grants awarded for 2024.

Overall, White said that while Black-owned eateries get support from those in Pittsburgh’s Black community, eateries still “have to rise to the occasion” to keep their current clientele and attract new customers. “The food, ambience, customer service, all has to be on point,” she said.

Bennett told the Courier that April 27 can’t get here fast enough. “I wanted to get in this competition just so I can prove to myself that I still ‘have it’ after battling breast cancer,” she said. “I’m looking to make a name for myself.”

And Bennett’s message to anyone else battling cancer or a life-threatening disease? “Don’t give up. There’s light at the other side of the tunnel.”

SMACKDOWN CONTESTANTS