We were lucky to catch up with BARBARA Bradford recently and have shared our conversation below.

BARBARA, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

It was a cold day in Slavic Village.. I wanted something good to eat. I walk to the corner of the street . There was gyro George and another restaurant that I use to go too but unfortunately that restaurant was closed down for good. Then my mind got to racing .. I wonder if I can take over this restaurant and make it A soul food place for the neighborhood since there is no Southern Homemade Dinners around here… At the time The owner of the restaurant also was the owner of the convenient store which was next door . I asked the owner was the restaurant for rent and he said oh .. you want to lease the restaurant I said yes.. He said ok I can have your lease ready in a few days… Now mind you.. The owner doesn’t kno me very well but he can tell I was serious and I was about businesss.. Without any type of hesitation he made the contract and had the keys ready.. This was a huge risk I was taking because I was in a completely different neighborhood, I was opening a restaurant in which this was all new to me. I had to start over from scratch and had to build an entire brand that may take 3,4,5 or even 10 years to build. The reason why I chose to open a restaurant was because of my grandfather . My grandfather owned Bradford ‘s Soulfood for over 20 years in Cleveland, Ohio and it was the number 1 Soulfood spot in Cleveland and I wanted to follow his footsteps and make him proud. I wanted to build a family legacy and have a business I can pass down to my children and their children. As of today we are establishing as a local Soulfood Destination, we’ve been featured on many news stations , as well as recipients for many awards.. Our Brand has grown and we even have a program for Kids.. We are very proud of our accomplishments and we foresee a very long lasting career in the food industry

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

JBGRILL Soulfood is an cornerstone restaurant which we sell Soulfood and American dishes.. We cater to events , parties, weddings , graduations and private events . No job is too big or too small. We also deliver and provide meals to our seniors and disabled clients that are unable to shop or cook for themselves. We also provide meals to children who are lacking food at home to ensure no child is left hungry

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source of new clients has been word of mouth. Customers will promote our food and our brand of social media and lots of comments and recommendations will follow shortly after that post. Customer will spread the word quick on Facebook and Instagram which is our largest social media platform with thousands of followers and lots of tagging and sharing our photos with friends and family

Have you ever had to pivot?

During the pandemic when we thought we were going to end our restaurant business . A bright light shined over our heads. Even though it was the pandemic customers still had to eat. We developed a strategy to where we would offer the customers Dinner and Delivery. The concept worked magically . Orders were piling up so high we had to hire more staff and more drivers

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.jbgrillsoulfood.com
• Instagram: Jbgrillsoulfood
• Facebook: Barbara Bradford Williams

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