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Support Black-Owned Restaurants During Black History Month. Here's How

Dine at Black-owned restaurants throughout Black History Month -- and all year round -- with these apps and services.

CNET staff
Nina Raemont Writer
A recent graduate of the University of Minnesota, Nina started at CNET writing breaking news stories before shifting to covering Security Security and other government benefit programs. In her spare time, she's in her kitchen, trying a new baking recipe.
Nina Raemont
3 min read
Black-owned business sign on a window.

Apps and online services can help you find and support Black-owned businesses in your area. 

Getty Images

Each February, to celebrate Black History Month, we highlight the achievements of Black Americans. Many people in the US frequent local Black-owned restaurants and other businesses as a practical way to support the Black community

But February isn't the only month to visit Black-owned restaurants, cafes and bars. With the help of these apps and services, you can find new places to eat and drink not only during Black History Month, but throughout the entire year. Through an app like EatOkra or through a publicly available local list of Black-owned food businesses, you might find a Black-owned spot in your city that turns into your favorite. Supporting the community, visiting a new business you haven't tried before and eating a tasty meal? There's simply nothing better. 

We've compiled a list of options for you to check out when looking for a Black-owned restaurant to support in your area. 

Use an app like EatOkra

The EatOkra app (iPhone, Android), founded by Black developers and programmers, has a list of Black-owned restaurants in many large cities across the country, such as Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta and Seattle. You can order takeout from within the app using GrubHub, DoorDash and other delivery services. The app has high ratings on Google Play and the App Store.

Consult these directories and Black-owned restaurant locators 

The Intentionalist provides local directories of where to shop to support all kinds of minority-owned businesses. It has specific filters if you're interested in searching for Black-, LGBTQ-, woman-, Native- and disability-owned, among many other sorts of businesses you'd like to give your money to. Its mission is to "spend like it matters," by amplifying diverse local businesses. For Black History Month, The Intentionalist is featuring Black-owned businesses across the country.

The National Black Guide has also created a directory of Black-owned businesses across the country that is organized under different tabs, like food and dining, health and fitness, community organizations and more. There are over 1,300 options under its US food and dining list. 

EatBlackOwned.com is a simple way to find and frequent Black-owned restaurants, wherever you may be. The website features over 4,000 Black-owned eateries around the world. All you have to do is type in the city you're in and see the nearest restaurants pop up in seconds. You can customize the distance radius so the results can be within two to 25 miles of your location.

Order delivery from Uber Eats, DoorDash and Caviar

The DoorDash, Uber Eats and Caviar apps can help you find Black-owned restaurants. Search for "Black owned" to see a list of nearby restaurants you can support.

DoorDash says there are hundreds of Black-owned restaurants to choose from within 30 states. When you select one of the businesses, the app should say, "Your order supports this Black-owned business."

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DoorDash highlights Black-owned restaurants in its app.

DoorDash

Search on Yelp

You can go to Yelp.com and enter "Black-owned restaurants," along with your location, and tap the search icon. You'll see a list of restaurants to choose from and some will even say Black-owned or Minority-owned & operated.

Follow #BlackOwnedRestaurants on Instagram

Social media is a great place to start when looking for a Black-owned restaurant or business. When you begin your search, select Tags and then type #blackownedrestaurants[city]. If the area you live in has listed the businesses, you'll see photos with more information, like a menu, a picture of food or a full list of restaurants that are Black-owned.

Use Google, Google Maps and Apple Maps

Do a search on Google that says, "Black-owned businesses in [city name, state]." This should give you a lot of results, from websites with a list of restaurants to pinpoints on Google Maps. Note that you may need to double-check some that are popular chains rather than independently owned restaurants and cafes.

If you search for Black-owned restaurants in Google Maps, search results will show up on the map. Google flags some of these as "Identifies as Black-owned," but even if it doesn't, you're just a few taps away from looking it up to find more information. 

If you do the same search in Apple Maps, you get local guides from EatOkra, if it has any for nearby cities.

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Google Maps can help you find Black-owned restaurants near you.

Angela Lang/CNET

For more on Black History Month, here's a list of some impactful and uplifting movies you can watch.