Organizers hope Black Restaurant Week inspires people of color

DENVER — Tyler Kanwai knows the food at TK’s Surf and Turf stands out.

“A lot of people say Colorado doesn’t have seasoned food. I beg to differ. Try us,” Kanwai said. He goes by TK and runs the East Denver eatery. 

“Just like every other young boy wants to imitate his father, I used to sit back and watch my dad like create masterpieces in the kitchen,” he said. 

TK said he’s living his late father’s dream after opening the restaurant in 2020, then going viral the following year.

“Denver Food Scene came by and did a review of my signature plate, The Works, that I was showing you earlier and we got over a million views in less than 24 hours,” he said. 

Business boomed, but TK’s always looked for ways to bring new customers to try the business.

So, last year, he decided to join Black Restaurant Week. 

“They also helped us reach you know new customers that we may not have been able to reach,” he said. “Definitely when they reached out this year it was of course a huge yes.”

Now in its second year running in Colorado, Black Restaurant Week is showcasing 10 Black-owned businesses across the Denver metro. 

“It’s my background you know, it’s ethnic dishes, it stems from my parents and grandparents,” said Ty Allen, who owns Mississippi Boy Catfish and Ribs. This is his first year participating in Black Restaurant Week. 

“This cuisine and the food that we prepare will rival any food, whether it be North Cherry Creek or any other five star, it would rival it, because we make everything from scratch,” he said. 

Allen said representation in the food industry is important – it matters.  

“You want to be able to visualize yourself in that same space,” he said. “When you don’t have that visualization and you don’t see it, it creates issues.”

“That’s why we joined Black Restaurant Week to increase that awareness and inspire those that not only look like us, but other entrepreneurs and people that have dreams,” he said. 

Find a list of participating restaurants in Denver’s Black Restaurant Week that runs through March 24.

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