Check out these 20 Black-owned restaurants in OKC

Though celebrated in February this year, Oklahoma City's Black-owned restaurants are a vibrant part of the 405 diningscape year-round.

Here is a list of some you'll want to visit.

Florence's Restaurant

1437 NE 23 St.

The grand dame of ALL local restaurants, regardless the owner's ethnicity, is Florence's Restaurant. No other restaurant in Oklahoma can boast a living legend in the kitchen. Florence and her daughter Victoria continue to pump out pitch-perfect comfort food made from scratch, specializing in fried chicken, candied yams, braised oxtail, house-made pies and a daily rotation of specials.

Big O's Pork and Dreams

Two locations

Long-time Edmond educator Owen Wilson Jr. has a barbecue blood lines that reach back to legendary east-side haunt Tom's Barbecue. His grandfather O.C. Blackwell was its longtime pitmaster, but Wilson went into education and made a name for himself as a coach, counselor and teacher. Back around 2010, he bought a trailer and made barbecue his side-hustle. Big O opened his first Pork and Dreams in Edmond, which has grown into two locations for ribs, brisket, pulled pork sausage, turkey legs and all the trimmings.

Black History Month: Palmer sisters take inclusive approach with their online guide

Black Walnut

100 NE 4th St.

Chef Andrew Black's casual dining concept features a menu aimed at the diner's mood. Whether hungry for a hearty snack or a room to wow friends with a menu teeming with contrasting flavors, color and culture, Black Walnut delivers for casual diners seeking variety.

Brielle's Bistro

2113 S Air Depot Blvd., Midwest City

Chef Dwayne Johnson and his wife Kaylee Owen offer breakfast, lunch and dinner cloaked in Cajun and Creole flavors. Natchitoches Meat Pies are the specialty of the house, but blueberry beignets are never out of style and the gumbo and shrimp etouffee are ideal on a cold day.

Carican Flavors

2701 N Martin Luther King Ave.

Owner Sharon McMillan is closing in on 20 years serving the 405 diningscape flavors from the Caribbean. Missing the Trini foods of her roots, McMillan opened Carican Flavors almost two decades ago. Stews come with oxtail, goat and lamb; and chicken is served in curry or seasoned with jerk.

Cornish Smokehouse

801 SW 119th St

Whether it's smoked wings, brisket, ribs, pork or turkey legs, the Cornish family has you covered. Chris and Nicole Cornish started out with a food truck that grew a strong enough following to spawn a catering business whence came their home on south Oklahoma City. Whatever you do, don't sleep on their wing game.

'A barrier breaker': How Georgetown’s John Thompson inspired generations of Black basketball coaches

George's Happy Hog

712 Culbertson Dr.

George's Happy Hog was founded by George Thompson and Dee Bowlin, but in 2012 they sold it to Debra Ivory her son Stephen, who ran it together until the coronavirus claimed Debra's life in December 2020. Stephen carries on with the whole smoked wings his mother instituted, along with classic ribs, hot links, brisket, chopped beef, pulled pork and smoked bologna.

Good Girl Chocolate

Penn Square Mall

Tabatha Carr's life changed when she turned to chocolate during on the road to wellness. Now, she's serving chocolate to the stars and anchoring a space in Penn Square Mall with her might-mite chocolate factory. Good Girl Chocolate specializes in confections made with raw cacao beans, virgin coconut oil, agave and coconut sugar as alternative sweeteners.

Grey Sweater

100 NE 4 St.

Florence's might be the most iconic Black-owned restaurant in the 405 diningscape, but chef Andrew Black's Grey Sweater is no doubt the most dazzling. Featuring seasonal tasting menus in various shapes and sizes, Black employs a true brigade of kitchen talent whom he conducts through exercises in food-forward culinary expression by the plate.

Leo's Barbecue

3631 N Kelley Ave./Inside Homeland on 36th and Lincoln

Pitmaster Charles Smith spends his time at the Leo's location inside the new east-side Homeland location these days. The original store hasn't operated in over a year, but Smith continues to an unparalleled local barbecue tradition at Homeland. Started by his father, Leo's has long been known for ribs, brisket and pulled pork, but the hot barbecue sauce is genius and if you leave without banana-strawberry cake, it's a mortal sin.

In the crucible of historic change: I grew up Black and proud

Mama E's

4500 S Sunnylane Rd.

Mama E's has been the 405 diningscape's go-to for Soul food since chef Keith Patterson left a good job at Twin Hills Country Club to open a place of his own while grieving over the loss of his mother almost 15 years ago. Now in the Mid-Del area, Patterson still serves chicken and waffles plus neck bones, chicken and dressing, fried catfish, collard greens, macaroni and cheese, oxtails, chitlins, cornbread and sweet potato pie.

Not Cho Cheesecake

3933 N College Ave.

Spreading love through cheesecake wasn't Glen Whitaker's dream, but that didn't stop him from opening Not Cho Cheesecake in Bethany. Cheesecake fantasies belonged to his fiance, Shoshianna Moore, a 32-year-old Army combat veteran who started the business from home in the summer of 2019. But not long after she and Whitaker opened a store across the street from Southern Nazarene University, Moore's life was claimed by the coronavirus. Moore's dreams continue to manifest into reality thanks to Whitaker and a dedicated team who make a variety of individual and full-size cheesecakes, including cookies and cream, peanut butter and chocolate and Tennessee Whiskey.

Off the Hook Seafood & More

125 W Britton Rd.

The pandemic cost chef Corey Harris and his wife Loneisha their second Off the Hook location, but the original continues to pump out the Cajun favorites. Chef Corey and his family have been winners on Food Network, and he puts his own spin on matters, and might even bust a rhyme while you wait.

Caribbean Fusion Trini Style

6717 NW 23 St.

The local food truck specializing in the flavors of Trinidad and the surrounding islands, opened a permanent location Nov. 19. The new weekend location offers a full bar and a menu featuring rotis and rice plates for curry and grilled proteins seasoned with jerk. It's open noon to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

Queen of Sheba

2308 N MacArthur Blvd

Chef/owner Mimi Younis is a master of hospitality unless someone tries to sneak a fork into her traditional Ethiopian dining room. Her kitchen delivers authentic dishes like kitfo, messob, tibs, yedero watt, and yebeg kay watt served on authentic injera with spare rolls to tear into edible utensils.

Polk's House

2319 Lottie

Husband and wife chefs Shacopie and James Polk serve the classics from a tiny wooden restaurant with red trim and historic bones at the corner of NE 23 Street and Lottie Avenue. Weekdays are for lunch favorites like meatloaf, beef tips, fried smothered chicken and catfish, and smoked turkey legs. But on Fridays you might catch a king crab boil or juicy steak.

Smoked Out

6220 Northwest Expressway suite B

Pitmaster Leroy Richardson drew on two generations of family recipes to open his mobile barbecue kitchen in early 2018. Later the same year, he opened in west Oklahoma City, serving classic smoked meats and sides. Richardson carries on despite losing his fiancé and partner, Jacque Lucas, to the coronavirus.

Black History Month: See the Black trailblazers in entertainment, from Oprah to Beyoncé

Taste of Soul Giant Eggrolls

4605 SE 29th St., Del City

Cerese Bly has been in love with eggrolls her whole life, but she wasn't able to convince her husband of them until they were able to turn them into a small mobile kitchen business in 2012. Cerese now operates out of Del City serving massive eggrolls stuffed with classic and eclectic fillings. Taste of Soul's eggrolls might be stuffed with breakfast, a cheeseburger or Philly cheesesteak or traditional sausage and grilled chicken.

Tez Wingz

3801 N Oak Grove Dr., Midwest City

Masters of the Chicago-style wing, Will Jordan's Tez Wingz thrived during the pandemic with its convenient walk-up window and mobile-friendly menu. The restaurant specializes in crispy wings with sweet heat but also serves fried shrimp and catfish. Check out what our team of wing enthusiasts thought during the 2021 Summer Wing Ding.

Wings Supreme

3925 N Lincoln Blvd.

Born in Washington D.C., Wings Supreme goes back a ways when a pair of young Oklahoma students, Kelvin Martin and Eric Johnson, attended Howard University and opened the original there in 1989. The local entity dates back six years, and the front door has barely stood still since. Whether its politicos from the capitol or local neighbors, Wings Supreme stays busy serving its signature lemon pepper wings and about 20 other flavor profiles. Catfish and shrimp also get batter-fried treatment, and don't forget peach cobbler.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC's top 20 Black-owned restaurants