40 Prince George's Restaurants Win $5K To Overcome Pandemic

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — DoorDash, a food delivery service, awarded $5,000 to 40 restaurants in Prince George's County. The aid will help the eateries push through the coronavirus pandemic, which has hurt local sales.

A business networking website called Hello Alice will administer the grants. Hello Alice announced the winners on March 3. The Prince George's County Economic Development Corporation cheered the recipients in its April 7 newsletter.

"Prince George's County small businesses, especially its restaurant and food services community has suffered tremendously as a result of the pandemic," County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said in the email. "We are pleased that our commitment to supporting this community is shared by our friends at DoorDash and Hello Alice through its grant program."

The grants are part of DoorDash's $200 million commitment to help small businesses. The initiative, called the Main Street Strong Pledge, will assist small eateries over the next five years.

This was the second round of grants. The first batch sent $2 million to restaurants in Chicago, Denver, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and San Jose.

DoorDash upped the ante this time around, offering $10 million spread across 10 states and three Canadian cities. The awards will cover operating costs like rent, payroll, personal protective equipment and expanded outdoor capacity.

"Having these kinds of resources available to our business community will surely help them withstand this pandemic and emerge stronger as we recover from COVID-19," Alsobrooks added.

Each winner has three or fewer locations, reported under $3 million in revenue per store during 2019 and employs 50 workers or less per site. Every eatery that applied also earned free access to Hello Alice.

These restaurateurs took home the grand prize:

• Annie Esguerra, Banana Blossom Bistro
• Antoniese Ruffin, Cheers at 301
• Claudia Adejare, Tarmac Lounge and Restaurant
• Colette Benie, Colettes's Cafe
• Corries Hardy, Hardys BBQ
• David Son, Manna Corporate Deli
• Debby Portillo, Dumm's Pizza & Subs
• Dong Kim, Cafe Continental
• Doris Tucker, 301 Nutrition Spot
• Eric Shin, Seoul Spice
• Garrick Lumsden, Pennyroyal Station
• Gary Jamal Kelly, Dogs on the Curb
• Hyun Kim, Hanabi Japanese Steak and Seafood
• Irene Song, Hanami Japanese Restaurant
• Javier Fernandez, Emerita's Restaurant & Carry Out
• Lisa Nash, The Jerk Pit
• Lloyd Smith, Crave It On Main
• Lois Aba Kwakyewaa Yankah, Sankofa Cafe and Food Services
• Maria Koumpouras, Marathon Deli
• Mary Romero, Laceiba
• Michael Etienne, The Rail
• Michael Chmar, The Board and Brew
• Seeta Deonauth, Cecil's Bar
• Sheng Gao, Blue Sunday Bar and Grill
• Sil Mudsi, Balkonie Restaurant Bar and Grill
• Sonia Amo-Akonnor, The Hunger Tamer
• Staley, Casablanca Café
• Toyin Alli, Puddin'
• Veronica Lee, Casey's Coffee
• Victorious Hall, Spizzy
• Young Sun Kim, Yolo Chicken and Pocha
• Adam Greenberg, Bagels 'n Grinds
• Michael Woo, Pho88
• Lorraine Newton, Taste of the Caribbean
• Mamadou Fall, Chez Dior
• Wenting Jiang, East Pearl
• Mark Srour, Cornerstone Grill & Loft
• Candi Dailey, Ruby's Southern Kitchen
• Ngoc Anh Thi Do, Pho Tai 63
• Chih Chang, Andrews Restaurant

The full list of awardees is available here.

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