August is National Black Business Month, and all month, we’ve been speaking with Black entrepreneurs in our community. I stopped by Da Meat Up, a pop-up vegan soul food stand with the goal of making Southern comfort food healthier.
“So, we are Da Meat Up. We are a fully 100% vegan, plant-based comfort cuisine food business,” Coleisha Bennett, who goes by Chef Starr. “Food brings people together – and music – so, we tried to couple the two together which is why we call it Da Meat Up with a play on words.”
WFTS Chef Starr usually sells her food right outside of Black Radish Vegan Grocer in Tampa. “We’ve made it even as far as Connecticut with a pop-up, but we’re all over. As you can see, we have our traveling tent,” she said while smiling.
“I’ve done my research. I’ve done lots of experimenting. Plenty of hours in the kitchen trying to master textures of plants and beans and different things that I could use in place of traditional meat products,” she said.
Her menu is quite extensive with meals including vegan oxtails, fried chicken, BBQ ribs, mac and cheese, collard greens, and red velvet waffles, among other things.