Archive of ‘Entrepreneurs’ category

New De Nada restaurant in Birmingham is ready to serve Tex Mex and Authentic Mexican dishes

By Chanda Temple

In late 2024, Armando Martinez wanted to bring a restaurant to downtown Birmingham, where people could experience elevated Tex Mex and his Mexican roots.

As he drove by a building with boarded-up windows at Second Avenue and 13th Street North, he took a deep breath and wondered, “What if?”

What if this spot could become his spot.

The blackened mahi mahi from De Nada restaurant in Birmingham's Parkside District. It comes with black beans, rice, avocado lime dressing, guacamole and cilantro. (Photo by Chanda Temple)
The blackened mahi mahi from De Nada restaurant in Birmingham’s Parkside District. It comes with black beans, rice, avocado lime dressing, guacamole and cilantro. (Photo by Chanda Temple)

At the time, there were no sidewalks and the brush was overgrown. But there was possibility.

“What I saw was Regions Field and Railroad Park,” Armando, 31, said, citing that the building is less than one block from both. “I said, ‘Those are two anchors that can sustain this place. And there were also a few apartments that were done at the time, and two apartments under construction.’ ”

The idea simmered within his soul for a few months. He even looked at another location a few blocks over. But there was something about the building in the Parkside District that pulled him back.

In 2025, he contacted the landlord, and they had several conversations about Armando’s vision. Eventually, Armando inked a deal for the location, which will officially open in late April 2026 for lunch and dinner. He calls the restaurant De Nada, which means “You’re Welcome,” in Spanish.

Armando Martinez, owner of the new De Nada restaurant in Birmingham, AL. (Photo provided by De Nada)
Armando Martinez, owner of the new De Nada restaurant in Birmingham, AL. (Photo provided by De Nada)

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Sloss Furnaces is About to Smell Amazing, and this Auburn University Student Will Be One Reason Why  

By Chanda Temple

Last June as Jack Burke prepared to cook for Festa Italiana at Sloss Furnaces, the morning was bright and beautiful. But it didn’t  take long for the weather to turn.  

Rain came down in sheets and high winds blew tents everywhere. Jack and other vendors sought cover under a nearby viaduct, waiting for the worse to pass. And in that very moment, Jack wondered if his food had been ruined. Will people even come?

Eventually, the storm passed, and the sun came out again. So, did the people.

“Within an hour of opening up, boom! Thousands of people!” Jack recalled, adding that his food had survived. “We had a line wrapped around the tent. At 4 or 5 o’clock, it was as if half of Birmingham had decided to come to Sloss.” 

Jack Burke's focaccia bread from Molay Bros. (Photo provided by Jack Burke)
Jack Burke’s focaccia bread from Molay Bros. (Photo provided by Jack Burke)

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Birmingham’s On a Bun celebrates flavor, community and Crystal Peterson’s creative touch

By Chanda Temple

Crystal Peterson gets it.

Layoffs. Rising food prices. Unexpected expenses. They all came in like a fury the last few months of 2025, leaving wallets stretched for many. And as 2026 continues to unfurl, money remains tight.

To help ease the pain of what to eat for just one meal, Crystal Peterson, owner of On a Bun in downtown Birmingham, will give away 200 free hamburger and cheeseburger meals on Monday, Feb. 16 from 5 to 8 p.m. She’s also partnering with a non-profit organization to distribute 100 additional hamburger and cheeseburger meals to the unhoused in Birmingham.

“We want to care about the citizens just as much as anybody should,” she said. “Sometimes, you have to step in and be that person. It’s called good will.”

“We just hope that this one meal can maybe make your Monday.”

The plain cheeseburger from On A Bun. (Photo by Chanda Temple)
The plain cheeseburger from On A Bun. (Photo by Chanda Temple)

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A national nod meets a normal day for LaFete Chef Kristen Farmer Hall

By Chanda Temple

On Jan. 21, 2026, it didn’t take long for word to spread that Kristen Farmer Hall of the La Fete French bistro in downtown Birmingham had been named a James Beard Award semfinalist for Best Chef in the South.  

Her DMs, text messages and voicemails were full of celebrations about her shot at receiving the highest honor in the food industry. Finalists will be named on March 31, and the winners will be announced on June 15 at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony in Chicago. 

The Steak Frites from La Fete. (Photo by Caleb Chauncy)
The Steak Frites from La Fete. (Photo by Caleb Chauncey)

“It’s been a wonderful day for me, for La Fete and our city because of all the other nominations,” said Kristen, who is one of five Birmingham chefs/professionals/restaurants named as a semifinalist. Such news came two months after LaFete and 10  Birmingham restaurants/chefs were named in the MICHELIN Guide’s first-ever MICHELIN Guide to the American South. (La Fete made MICHELIN Guide’s Bib Gourmand List, which recognizes restaurants for “good quality, good value cooking.”)

“So, Birmingham continues to crush,” she said. “It’s been a big year.” 

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Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn owner opens up about a hard season

By Chanda Temple

For almost three months, Tanesha Sims-Summers debated whether she would get real on social media about a big issue facing her company.

In late fall 2025, her Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn Co. food truck, stopped running. At first, she thought it would be an easy fix because she and her husband, Clem Summers, have faced truck challenges in the past. But this issue was different.

The mechanic told them that the part and labor to fix the truck, which is known as Ms. Poppy, would be $6,500. (The rear differential, which distributes engine power to the rear axel, was not working.) And to make matters worse, they would have to pay up front to order the part.

They didn’t have the money for such a repair, and Tanesha thought long and hard about what to do: Should she start a Go Fund Me?

The Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn food truck is a 2004 model that Clem Summers and Tanesha Sims-Summers bought in 2019. They outfitted ready for it to roll in 2020, not anticipating how the pandemic would impact the business. They pivoted with online sales until the world opened back up again. (Photo from company's Facebook page.)
The Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn food truck is a 2004 model that Clem Summers and Tanesha Sims-Summers bought in 2019 for $50,000 from Golden Flake. They outfitted it and had planned to put it in operation in 2020, not anticipating how the pandemic would impact the business. They pivoted with online sales until the world opened back up again. Today, the truck, which is paid off, has experienced vandalism twice and even a fire through the years. Still, the owners managed to get it rolling every time. Now, they are hosting a Go Fund Me to pay for a major repair. (Photo from company’s Facebook page.)

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Birmingham gains more James Beard semifinalists in 2026

By Chanda Temple

Five Birmingham restaurants/chefs have been named as semifinalists for a James Beard Award, the Oscars for the food industry.

From here, restaurant and chef nominees will be announced on Tuesday, March 31, and the winners will be recognized on Monday, June 15 in Chicago during the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Ceremony.

The Birmingham semifinalists are:

  • Outstanding Chef: Rob McDaniel, Bayonet
  • Best Chef (South): Kristen Hall, La Fête
  • Best Chef (South): Geri-Martha O’Hara and Ryan O’Hara, Pizza Grace
  • Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service: Eric Bennett, Continental Drift
  • Outstanding Hospitality: Bottega

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Inside PopUp Bar Bham: Drinks, Decor and Delicious Joy

By Chanda Temple

Earlier this week, a woman on Instagram challenged her followers to write a letter to God, telling Him what they wanted in 2026.

The message got to me to thinking: What prayers do owners in Birmingham’s food industry have for 2026?

I posed that question to Kelli Caulfield, of PopUp Bar Bham on Morris Avenue in downtown Birmingham, during her Influencer Night event this week. As the DJ played Usher’s “You Make Me Wanna …”, which lured creators to dance floor to do Karaoke, Kelli shared her prayer: coverage and protection for others in the culinary community.

The Sleigh Baby, Sleigh from PopUp Bar Bham, is made with white rum, coconut rum, lime, mint syrup and coconut cream. It's topped with prosecco. (Photo provided by Kelli Caulfield)
The Sleigh Baby, Sleigh from PopUp Bar Bham is made with white rum, coconut rum, lime, mint syrup and coconut cream. It’s topped with prosecco. (Photo provided by Kelli Caulfield)

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Air Force Veteran Matt Coltrin finds new mission with Roll Cajun Boudin food truck in Birmingham

The chicken boudin egg rolls, far left, are the post popular item on the Roll Cajun Boudin food truck, which is run by Matt Coltrin. (Photo by Chanda Temple)
The chicken boudin egg rolls, far left, are the post popular item on the Roll Cajun Boudin food truck, which is run by Louisiana native Matt Coltrin. (Photo by Chanda Temple)

By Chanda Temple

When Matt Coltrin retired from the Air Force after 21 years, he thought he’d found his next mission and that was to work for a high-paying telework job in Birmingham. It was the kind of role most people would envy.

The money was good. The benefits were better. But the happiness he expected never appeared.

That part would come much later, in a food truck parked on Birmingham streets, where the smell of Creole pork and rice, wrapped in sausage casings felt more like home than any office ever could.

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Hallmark Channel gets a taste of Alabama with Sally Wicker McKay and her mom on new baking show contest

By Chanda Temple

Alabama food stylist Sally Wicker McKay and her mother, Amy Wicker, are winning hearts and bellies on Hallmark Channel’s new baking contest, “Baked with Love Holiday,” which airs on Monday nights at 8 p.m. CST.

Sally Wicker McKay and her mother, Amy, are competing on the Hallmark Channel's Baked with Love:Holiday on Monday nights at 8 p.m. CST. (Photo: Hallmark Channel)
Sally Wicker McKay and her mother, Amy, are competing on the Hallmark Channel’s Baked with Love:Holiday on Monday nights at 8 p.m. CST. (Photo: Hallmark Channel)

The show, which debuted on Monday, Oct. 27 and is hosted by Emmy-award winning actress, producer and entrepreneur Tamera Mowry-Housley, features two cooking challenges per episode. The judges are Irish Chef Anna Haugh and New York Times cooking producer Vaughn Vreeland.

On Oct. 27, the mother/daughter team won the hometown Christmas pie challenge with their peach pie, which Anna said was “really nicely baked. The spices are so important. That’s what gives it length of flavor and complexity. It’s brilliant.”

Sally, who is based in metro-Birmingham, said the peach pie recipe is something they’ve made over the decades for family gatherings.

“We may look calm on the exterior but the wheels are always turning in my head,” Sally said on the show.

Tamera Mowry-Housley hosts "Baked with Love: Holiday,'' as Judges Chef Anna Haugh and New York Times Cooking Producer Vaughn Vreeland help pick a winner each week. (Photo: Hallmark Channel)
Tamera Mowry-Housley hosts “Baked with Love: Holiday,” as Judges Chef Anna Haugh and New York Times Cooking Producer Vaughn Vreeland help pick a winner each week. (Photo: Hallmark Channel)

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Javacia Harris Bowser’s breast cancer journey was full of breaking, building and becoming

By Chanda Temple

When Javacia Harris Bowser walked into her doctor’s office and saw a big box of tissues in January 2020, she knew what words would come next.

She had breast cancer.

The doctor was expecting Javacia to cry. She did not. In fact, it would be some time before Javacia shed a tear over the news of being diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer. Instead, Javacia, a Type A person with an award-winning writing background, pulled out a notepad and said, “Ok, what do we need to do?”

Javacia Harris Bowser
Breast cancer survivor Javacia Harris has advice for those wanting to help loved ones fighting breast cancer. “Don’t ghost them,” she said. “When we don’t know exactly what to say or do, we just decide not to show up at all. Don’t do that. We would ratchet you say the wrong thing than not say anything because at least you are trying. Don’t be afraid to ask questions.” (Photo by Melissa Newton)

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