Diversity-Owned Spotlight

This week’s Diversity-Owned Small Business is Keefer Court Bakery & Cafe. Started in 1983, Sunny and Paulina Kwan created Minnesota’s first Chinese bakery, which has expanded to a full Cantonese menu. Today, the Kwan’s second daughter, Michelle has taken over the family business. I’m not

This week’s Diversity-owned Small Business Spotlight is: Tono Pizzeria + Cheesesteaks ! Co-owners Antonio Gambino and Shaz Khan are bringing Sicily and Philly to both Maplewood and Saint Paul. Over two decades ago, I had my very first Philly cheesesteak at Pat’s King of Steaks

This week’s Diversity-owned Small Business is: Golden Thyme on Selby. Co-owned by Stephanie & Mychael Wright, this lil gem in St. Paul has been around for almost 21 years. Their coffee menu is composed of jazz musicians/jazz themes. And they have a menu for breakfast

This week’s Diversity-Owned Business Spotlight is PinKU Japanese Street Food. It’s conceived and owned by business partners John Sugimura and Xiaoteng Huang (he goes by “X”). Together they’ve created high-end Japanese cuisine in a fine-casual setting. The portions are made so you can order a

This week’s Diversity-owned Small Business Spotlight is Tacos el “Kevin” . Owners Saturmina and Esteban have carved out a quaint space inside the Portland Market convenience store. This taco spot is named after Kevin, their 8-year old son. With a limited menu, tacos are the

This week’s Diversity-Owned Spotlight is: Himalayan Restaurant. Co-owners Naveen Shrestha, Pravin Shrestha moved the restaurant to its current location after six years in the Seward neighborhood. Now they’re serving the flavors of Nepali, Indian, & Tibetan cuisines to E. Lake Street. I love spicy-the hotter

This week’s Diversity-owned Business Spotlight is: Quang Restaurant. It’s an institution best known for its pho. Quang was started 30+ years ago by Lung Tran and put pho on the Mpls map, way before it got popular. Since the matriarch’s retirement, it’s now run by

This week’s Diversity-Owned Business Spotlight is: Fit 1st Running store. Owner Manny Minter was a marathon runner, competing in college as part of a 2 time All-American team. Knowing first-hand how crucial the shoe fit is, he named his store to represent the idea of

This week’s Diversity-Owned Spotlight is Trio Plant-based. Owned by Louis Hunter, it’s the First African American owned 100% plant based restaurant in Minnesota. Even meat eaters will enjoy the flavors of its soul food! Several trips down south introduced me to my love of soul

This week’s Diversity-Owned Small Business spotlight is: Pizzeria Lola, as well as Young Joni and Hello Pizza. This trio of artisan pizzerias are all led and created by Owner Chef Ann Kim. Kim won a James Beard Award last year and lucky for us she