Markos R, owner of Buraka restaurant on Willy Street 

 

This year marks the 10-year anniversary of Madison Black Restaurant Week, a festive and empowering celebration of Black cuisine & culture 🎉🍽

For a decade, Madison Black Restaurant Week (MBRW) has:

• Celebrated and uplifted Black-owned food businesses
• Encouraged residents and visitors alike to explore new dining experiences
• Driven economic impact and visibility for local entrepreneurs
• Showcased the cultural richness and resilience of South Central Wisconsin's Black community

Madison Black Restaurant Week is annual marketing campaign on behalf of restaurants, caterers, food carts, food trucks, mobile food vendors, farmers, and specialty food purveyors.

We promote participating businesses through a multi-pronged campaign that includes TV, radio, a media preview event, socials, newsletters, emails, and extensive flyers.

We also hold a region-wide vote for Best of Madison Black Restaurant Week, that draws thousands of entries from the public. Does your food business have what it takes to be crowned a Madison Black Restaurant Week winner 🤴🏿? 

The goals of this campaign are to bring awareness of your food business to the public and to increase your sales.

Restaurants offer Madison Black Restaurant Week Specials to their customers during the week, curating unique, custom meals that showcase their specialties at attractive pricing. All food vendors are encouraged to custom craft a Madison Black Restaurant Week Special on offer throughout the week.  

Because the public will be actively seeking out Black food businesses during the week, participating restaurants and food trucks are strongly encouraged to stay open as much as possible during the week and to accurately post their hours of operations and locations to their websites and pages. 

The Madison Black Chamber will host multiple events throughout this campaign that offer opportunities to market your business. A calendar of events will be shared at a later date. 

 

This year, the festivities kick off with the $5 Food Taste Jamboree, an outdoor, food-tasting community event that attracts thousands of visitors throughout the region. The Jamboree takes place on Sunday, August 10th, from 2-6pm at Warner Park, 2930 N Sherman Ave, in Madison.

Restaurants, Other Food Vendors, Non-Food Vendors, and Community Partners are welcome to register for the Jamboree.

• Bring your own 10'x10' or smaller tent - tents not provided
• Bring your own table and chairs - one (1) table and two (2) chairs available for rental as an add-on $25 expense
• Electricity is extremely limited - no cords will be provided      

The Jamboree is a cashless event for Restaurants and Other Food Vendors, relieving the burden of cash management while increasing speed and efficiency of line management. All food vendors sell food tastes in exchange for Jamboree tickets, which are sold to the public for $5. Food vendors turn in their Jamboree tickets to the Madison Black Chamber at the end of the night and will be paid $4 per ticket. Payment will be issued within 3 to 5 business days via check or EFT.  

Vendors are not allowed to sell water, tea, soda, or juice boxes during the Jamboree. Sales of specialty drink items such as smoothies and fresh juices are permissible. 

 

Restaurants can participate in the Madison Black Restaurant Week Campaign (Aug 10-17), the $5 Food Taste Jamboree (Aug 10), or both! Discounted bundle pricing is available for restaurants who choose to participate in both!

Other Food Vendors (caterers, mobile food vendors, farmers, specialty food purveyors, and chefs) populate the $5 Food Taste Jamboree (Aug 10) and may opt into private/corporate catering opportunities during the Madison Black Restaurant Week Campaign (Aug 10-17).

Non-Food Vendors are welcome to sell retail goods at the $5 Food Taste Jamboree (Aug 10). Unlike food vendors, they are not restricted to $5 pricing.

Community Partners are invited to share information that enriches the community at the $5 Food Taste Jamboree (Aug 10). Community partners will not sell retail goods, memberships, or subscriptions at the event. 

 

Your Madison Black Restaurant Week registration includes:
✅ Business promotional opportunities, listing in event flyer, & multi-platform advertising (tv, radio, social media)
✅ Business Marketing Toolkit, including: T-shirt, posters, window decals, & more
✅ Vendor space at the $5 Food Taste Jamboree (Aug 10th, 2 pm–6 pm)
✅ Referrals for catering gigs with corporate & private partners
✅ Vendor space at South Madison Farmers Market (Aug 17th, 9 am–4 pm)
✅ Invitations to additional pop-up events throughout the campaign

 

SAVE THE DATE for an All-Business Meet & Greet to be held from 2-5pm on Monday, July 28th to meet other business owners, receive marketing kits and t-shirts, share best practices, and discuss strategies to fully leverage the marketing campaign. Feel free to bring a dish to pass from your kitchen 👩🏿‍🍳

Registration discounts are available to members of the Madison Black Chamber of Commerce. Discounts on vendor fees and elevated promotional opportunities to grow all year long are just some of the MANY benefits of membership. Join today and start saving! Learn more about membership here. 

 

Thank you for helping make the 10th Annual Madison Black Restaurant Week the best one ever! Please complete the next page to register your business. We will use the details you provide to maximize your experience and highlight your business through promotional campaigns and media opportunities throughout the region.   

Not sure if you're a member or not? Click here to view the Black Business Directory and your membership status.

Learn more about Chamber membership and sign up for as little as $18 a month!  

Madison Black Restaurant Week is a renown campaign and the $5 Food Taste Jamboree is a high-profile event subject to inspection. To ensure the safety and sustainability of the campaign, we require our participants to adhere to state and local rules governing sales and the sales of food.

All vendors must have a Wisconsin Seller's Permit.

All participating restaurants must have a valid Food and Drink License.

All participating mobile food establishments must have a Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) Mobile License or a Mobile Retail Food & Base License. 

If you are an occasional food seller and your business serves food to the public at one location for no more than 14 consecutive days, you must obtain a Transient Retail Food License.

*** You are highly encouraged to invest in t-shirts for your entire team to embody the exciting, collective spirit of Madison Black Restaurant Week! ***

Thank you for opting into the 10th Annual Madison Black Restaurant Week! Based on your selections, your cart total is ${calculation}. Refunds will not be issued.