Erick Williams Is Inspiring a New Generation of Black Entrepreneurs [Video]

We think of chefs as having an impact on food — a particular flavor combination, an eye-catching plating style, a clever cooking technique. Their influence may also emerge in the cooks who trained in their kitchens. But while every bite of Erick Williams’ cornbread and gumbo is memorable, and chefs like Damarr Brown, Ryan Bartlow, and Dave Beran regularly cite the power of his mentorship, there’s much more to his story.

Williams’ greatest legacy as a chef and business owner may be his latest project: helping restore Bronzeville, a long-neglected community on the South Side of Chicago near his three restaurants, Virtue Restaurant & Bar, Mustard Seed Kitchen, and Daisy’s Po-Boy & Tavern, and a Mexican bar and restaurant he plans to open later this year. Bronzeville, which boomed after the Great Migration in 1920, was once a cultural and business hub of Chicago. Black authors and musicians including Richard Wright, …