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‘New name with the same great taste’: Eat Black Charlotte food festival returns

Bites on Seventh will be held across multiple blocks in the First Ward area of uptown.
Bites on Seventh will be held across multiple blocks in the First Ward area of uptown.

Foodies, listen up. It’s almost time for one of the city’s most popular food festivals centered on Charlotte’s Black culinary scene.

Eat Black Charlotte is coming back to uptown June 1 with a new name: Bites on Seventh.

The family-friendly event has typically wrapped up the Eat Black Charlotte Week event, but this year’s festival will return in its new location with a new format.

Similar to years past, Bites on Seventh will feature over a dozen new and longtime local Black-owned restaurants and food trucks, but in a block-party format with curated bites and beverages instead.

Bites on Seventh will feature more than 15 Black-owned restaurants and food trucks.
Bites on Seventh will feature more than 15 Black-owned restaurants and food trucks. Courtesy of Bites on Seventh

“It’s beautiful to see something that started as a hashtag in 2020 grow into a cultural movement,” said Erique Berry, team leader and co-founder of Eat Black Charlotte. “We were super intentional with how we designed the festival this year.”

Here’s a look at the local restaurants and food trucks you can expect to see at the fourth annual festival:

Q’s Culinary Cart offers specialty hot dogs, burgers, sandwiches and more.
Q’s Culinary Cart offers specialty hot dogs, burgers, sandwiches and more. Cory Wilkins/The Daily Special

There will also be activities, educational programs and live performances from Ray Singleton and 5-year-old rap star Savannah “VanVan” McConneaughey.

[HUNGRY FOR MORE? A guide to Charlotte’s Black-owned restaurants offering seafood, soul food, sweet treats and more]

“The added entertainment and performances this year will set the vibe,” Cory Wilkins, co-founder of Eat Black Charlotte, said in a statement. “You’ll get good food, and it will also be a festival where you’ll want to hang out all day while celebrating some of the best Black-owned restaurants in the city.”

The festival will be held in the First Ward area across multiple blocks near Victoria Yards from 2-7 p.m.

Bites on Seventh is free to attend, but guests will be required to buy a $10 wristband linked to a credit or debit card to buy food and drinks during the event. VIP tickets with early access and a swag bag are also available for $40.

You can find more information about the festival and how to get tickets online at www.bitesfoodfestival.com.

This story was originally published May 1, 2024 at 11:26 AM.

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Chyna Blackmon
The Charlotte Observer
Chyna Blackmon was a service journalism reporter for The Charlotte Observer. A native of the Carolinas, she grew up in Columbia, SC, and graduated from Queens University of Charlotte. She’s also worked in local television news in Charlotte, NC, and Richmond, VA. Support my work with a digital subscription
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