Keith Lee Partners With Pepsi Dig In To Find The Country's Best Black-Owned Restaurants
By Melanie VanDerveer on June 9, 2023 at 10:30 AM EDT
Keith Lee and Pepsi Dig In have recently teamed up to find the country's best Black-owned restaurants with a contest.
Pepsi Dig In, a platform to help drive access, awareness, and business growth for Black-owned restaurants, has partnered with the wildly popular TikTok food critic to help change the lives of some restaurant owners.
Keith Lee Has Joined Forces With Pepsi Dig In To Help Bring More Awareness To Black-Owned Restaurants
"Pepsi Dig In and I are trying to find the best Black-owned restaurants nationwide. How are we going to do that? By your nominations. Let's talk about it," he began his video. "Pepsi Dig In is a platform designed to drive access, growth, and awareness to Black-owned restaurants."
Lee continued to explain that from now through July 1, nominations are being accepted for your favorite Black-owned restaurant on their website. He then revealed, "what's in it for the restaurant."
"Pepsi Dig In is partnering with MGM to bring one restaurant out to Las Vegas and showcase a signature dish on one of the country's largest culinary stages," he continued. "Now, what's in it for you? Ten people will have a chance to win a $1,000 gift card to the restaurant they nominate. So that's $10,000 in Black-owned food that can be won."
He added that there's also a "chance to win tickets to the Super Bowl of 2024" and a trip to New York City.
Lee's video explaining the partnership and contest received over 10 million views in just two days. Tons of supportive and congratulatory messages filled the comment section of the video.
Popular TikToker Mama Tot wrote, "Woohoooo!!!! Come on, Keith!! This is a great opportunity for you and the business!!! 💜"
Many other followers commented on different restaurants they plan to nominate.
Keith Lee Is Happy To Pay It Forward Through His Partnership With Pepsi Dig In
Lee said he is excited to see the nominated restaurants so he can "discover more new spots to try."
"I'm fortunate that people's response to my honest food reviews has turned into a platform that has made a difference for local businesses across the country," Lee said in a press release.
"I'm excited to pay that forward for Black-owned restaurants with Pepsi Dig In. The Restaurant Royalty program is about spreading the word to celebrate great food and boosting businesses. I can't wait to see what people recommend and discover more new spots."
Chief Marketing Officer of PepsiCo Global Foodservice, Scott Finlow, added, "Restaurant Royalty is an integral part of the larger Pepsi Dig In platform and is designed to spotlight and support Black-owned restaurants year-round by tapping into their key audience: engaged foodies."
With social media being an essential part of everyday life and Lee's social media presence being as significant as it is, a bigger audience can be reached.
"Social media can be transformative for restauranteurs and food lovers like Keith Lee reinforce the life-changing impact an individual and their platform can make," Finlow said. "Our goal with Restaurant Royalty is to get even more diners excited to support Black-owned restaurants and use Pepsi's network, partners, and scale to help grow these local businesses."
The grand prize winner will be awarded a trip for two to Las Vegas in February 2024, plus tickets to football's biggest game on February 11. The winner will also get the chance to dine at Pepsi Dig In's Restaurant Royalty Residency at MGM Resorts International.
One first-prize winner will be awarded a trip for two to New York City for an exclusive experience at Platform by the James Beard Foundation, a brand new show kitchen and educational hub, as well as event space for culinary arts programming at Pier 57's Market 57 food hall.
To nominate your favorite Black-owned restaurants, visit DigInShowLove.com. More information can be found on PepsiDigIn.com.
