Restaurant Week Addresses Aftershocks of Pandemic On Black-Owned Restaurants
Toronto, ON (October 25, 2022) Canada’s top-ranked online magazine for Black Canadians, ByBlacks.com, presents its National ByBlacks Restaurant Week, 2022 Fall Edition, featuring a curated list of Black-owned Restaurants across Canada from November 14 to 20, 2022.
Rising food costs have brought menu prices to an all-time high. During ByBlacks Restaurant Week, participating restaurants will offer “Prix Fixe” menus with discounted prices ranging from $20 to $40. The special menus will include an appetizer, entree and dessert.
According to Restaurants Canada’s latest annual report, half of Canada’s restaurants are operating at a loss or just barely breaking even. And those numbers are even worse for Black-owned businesses, which are less likely to be able to recover financially from the pandemic. “ByBlacks.com is thrilled to partner with other Black-owned Canadian media houses, Black Community Associations, Tourism Organizations, Restaurants Canada and sponsors, to amplify the participating restaurants,” says Roger Dundas, Co-Founder and Publisher.
In June 2022, there were over 170,000 job vacancies in the foodservice industry, that’s three times more than pre-pandemic levels. And 85 percent of independent full-service restaurants took on new debt due to COVID-19 ranging in the tens of thousands. We know that Black-owned businesses tend to be under-funded and also under-researched. They need our support now more than ever.
The ByBlacks team has curated food experiences for this week from Black-owned restaurants in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. Restaurants participating hail from Surrey, Vancouver, Windsor, Oakville, Mississauga, Brampton, Toronto, Whitby, Bowmanville, Ottawa and Montreal. Restaurants are still onboarding, with further anticipated participation from establishments in Alberta and Nova Scotia.
It’s expected that Canadians will use ByBlacks Restaurant Week as an opportunity to sample cuisine from their respective hometowns.
“Participating in ByBlacks Restaurant Week is super important to us because we are not just represented as a restaurant in Toronto; we’re represented as a Black Women-owned restaurant as well,” said Nicole Charles-Page, Sugarkane. “It’s been a tough road in the restaurant ownership industry for people of colour, and we continually face unique challenges. So this spotlight is great! ByBlacks Restaurant Week is an awesome way of saying… We’re here! Come check us out! We’re doing it.. and you can do it too!”
ByBlacks Restaurant Week is supported by Canadian membership organizations; Afro Canadian Business Network, Destination Toronto, Tourism Montreal, Ottawa Tourism, Discover Halifax, and Restaurants Canada.
“Restaurants Canada is happy to support ByBlacks’ Black Restaurant week. Foodservice is the most diverse industry in Canada, and it’s community events like these that give us all a chance to celebrate that diversity,” said Christian Buhagiar, President & CEO, of Restaurants Canada. “We’re honoured at the opportunity to share our member benefits with all ByBlacks Restaurant Week participants.”
Media Sponsors include FEVA TV, Afroglobal TV, Canada Takeout, Cuisine Noir, GBKM.FM , Jump Podcast, The Caribbean Camera, and The Morning Vibe.
Eat Black Food in Canada from November 14 to 20, 2022!
Visit byblacks.com/restaurantweek to view the list of participating restaurants.
SOURCE ByBlacks.com
