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A tiny restaurant can hold a whole neighborhood together if the intention is right. We’re back in the studio for Season 11, and we’re joined by Chef Chloe Gould, the owner of Dixie Pura Kitchen, a Black-owned restaurant tucked into Chicago’s Bronzeville community. Chloe doesn’t just cook, she translates. Her “Southern meets Southeast Asian” approach turns familiar comfort into a cultural bridge, and the dining room feels like home on purpose, right down to the photos on the walls and the conversations that make guests forget the clock.
We go deep on the story behind the name Dixie Pura, how Singapore shaped her palette, and how grief, a kidney transplant, and personal loss reshaped her relationship with food, work, and joy. Chloe also breaks down what people rarely see: the kitchen ladder from prep to line cook to sous chef, the business math behind food costs, and the reality of running service with a lean team while still protecting the guest experience.
Then we get practical and timely about technology in restaurants. What happens when robots deliver plates, staffing stays unstable, and AI tools become the “extra set of hands” small businesses can’t afford? We talk sustainability, training costs, and why human touch still matters, plus a bigger community play: how collective buying power could help Black-owned restaurants protect margins without cutting corners.
If you’re planning a Chicago food trip, looking for a Bronzeville gem, or building a business and need a real founder story, press play. Subscribe to Black Businesses Matter, share this episode with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find these stories.
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