KC G.I.F.T.’s restaurant passport invites locals to support—and rate—Black-owned businesses
Savor the City passport // Photo by Brock Wilbur
Set down the fork and break out the pen–it’s your turn to jot down notes about your meal as you eat your way through over a dozen Kansas City restaurants.
The non-profit organization, Kansas City G.I.F.T. (Generating Income for Tomorrow), has launched its first “Savor the Flavor” restaurant passport to support Black-owned eateries.
G.I.F.T. was created by Brandon Calloway in 2020 with a mission to close the racial wealth gap and reduce poverty-related crime by empowering small, Black-owned businesses in Kansas City’s historically redlined neighborhoods.
The new passport supports a specific goal of G.I.F.T’s mission of helping to foster economic growth to not only reverse the effects of systemic racism but also transform communities, one business or restaurant at a time, for a more equitable future.
“As the current administration is trying to actively tear down support for Black and Brown communities, KC G.I.F.T. remains dedicated to supporting Black-owned businesses through aggressive funding and support,” said Calloway in a press release. “As a community, it is up to us to actively create the world we want to see. This passport offers a fun and engaging way for people to take action on that and make a difference by supporting local Black entrepreneurs.”
Savor The City passport outside of the Black G.I.F.T. Business Center // Photo by Sarah Sipple
The passport is free and features 13 Black-owned restaurants, each with a QR code to preview the menu and space for notes and rating each meal on a scale of 1 – 5 plates. Participating restaurants include Ruby Jean’s Juicery, Vee’s Sweets and Treats, Black Wallstreet, Niecie’s Restaurant, PeachTree Cafeteria, Union on the Hill, District Biskuits, The Combine, The Prospect KC, District Fish and Pasta House, Urban Restaurant, Karen’s Kakes, and Gigi’s Vegan Wellness Cafe.
Instead of discounts or completion prizes, the reward is in using the booklet itself: trying new dishes or restaurants, supporting historically underrepresented and underfunded entrepreneurs and chefs and bakers, and enjoying Kansas City one plate at a time.
The paper booklets can be picked up at the G.I.F.T. Business Center (5008 Prospect Avenue, Kansas City, MO) and a limited quantity is available at each participating restaurant.
