We caught up with the brilliant and insightful George Ndege AKA Jojo a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jojo, thanks for joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

Tamu Grill and Catering is a Kenyan fusion restaurant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We opened our doors in November 2021 during the pandemic as Kilimanjaro Grill and Catering. However, apart from the name causing confusion with other restaurants and businesses that shared “Kilimanjaro,” such as Kilimanjaro Restaurant and Kilimanjaro Cafe, the name was somewhat generic and lengthy. I also felt that it did not capture the Kenyan and African-inspired dishes that were powered by our in-house spice blends to create flavors that were distinctively mine as a chef. It needed to be a Swahili name that captured the sophistication of our cultural flavors but was also easy for customers to enunciate.

After weeks of focus groups and brainstorming with family and friends, Tamu, which in the Swahili language means delicious or tasty, was born. Now, when a customer asks what Tamu means, I simply respond: delicious.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My name is Chef Jojo, and I am the owner/chef of Tamu Grill and Catering, a Kenyan fusion restaurant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After an unfulfilling stint as a marketing specialist in corporate America, I got into the food business. I needed to engage in a field that I had a passion for. I knew I liked cooking and music. Since I could not sing to save my life, I got into the music promotion business as a side hustle. At the same time, I also learned to cook professionally at an African restaurant here in Minnesota in exchange for my marketing skills and later became a partner. After four years, I left and started my own catering business and, two years later, opened Tamu Grill and Catering, which is family-run. We opened in November of 2021 at the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

I grew up in Nairobi, Kenya, where I was exposed to Kenyan, Indian, and Middle Eastern food. I learned to make West African food at the restaurant I previously worked, my spouse is from Southeast Asia, and I now call Minnesota home. So, while my primary influence is Kenyan cooking, I incorporate all these other cultures I have been privileged to be part of to create dishes that are Kenyan but uniquely Chef Jojo’s creation and genuinely cross-cultural.

My cooking philosophy is to use my blend of spices and herbs to create flavorful dishes from affordable everyday foods. I do not believe one has to be wealthy to enjoy delicious food. I cook from my heart, enjoy experimenting with spices, and go for flavor. Whether it’s Chef Jojo’s seasoned fries, chips masala, greens, or my line of mild curries, I use my spice blends to create a delicate balance that does not overpower but enhances the flavor of a dish. In a word, what sets Tamu Grill and Catering apart is the flavor.

As for my love for music, I volunteer at Fresh Air Community Radio 90.3 FM every Sunday from noon to 2:00 pm CST. I co-host African Rhythms, a radio program that features African music from the continent and the diaspora. I have to consider myself blessed as I get to do the two things I am most passionate about.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

In the restaurant/hospitality industry, shortage of labor is the major problem. The revolving door of hiring, training and worker departures is a real impediment to daily operations and long-term planning. You just do not know if one or any of the employees will show up the next day. To survive and keep the doors open, I knew that I had to act quickly. So, I cut the hours to where we open for only 5 hours a day (3pm-8pm), shrunk the menu and and optimized food prep and other processes. At any time, there is just two people working; a back end and a front end person. The business is now basically myself, my son and my daughter. We recently took a short vacation and just had to close the restaurant. That is how we have managed to stay afloat. I even find time to co-host African Rhythms, a radio program featuring African music Sundays 12:00pm to 2:00pm and then open the restaurant at 3pm. The studio is only a few minutes away.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic has taught me to unlearn the old way of running a restaurant. It had to maintain consistent operating hours and days lest customers abandon the business. People now understand that restaurant owners, especially small and family restaurant operators are human and and need a break. If I feel fatigued, I now can hang a sign and close early without customers crucifying the business.

Contact Info:

• Website: tamugrill.com
• Instagram: tamugrill
• Facebook: Facebook.com/tamugrillandcatering

Image Credits
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