A Ghanaian food pop-up is coming to Stackt Market this Saturday October 3.
Founded by Akua Fosua and Patricia Yeboah, this mother-daughter duo is connecting with the local community through the love of Ghanaian home-style cooking.
With a global pandemic and civil unrest causing turmoil around the world, Patricia and her mother felt that there was a lot of was sadness and tension among people, so they wanted to do something to lift their spirits and give back to the community.
“With everything that was going on in the city and the world, especially with racial tensions, we felt invisible and like we [Black people] weren’t being supported,” says Yeboah.
“One of the things that always connected the people that came into our space was [my mom's] cooking".
And just like that, Mama Akua's Ghanaian food pop-up was born.
The duo had their first pop-up in the beginning of August just off the corner of Dundas and Ossington. Hosted by their friends at Man of Kent, the event drew over 400 people and raised over $2000. Patricia and Akua donated half of the proceeds to the Black Legal Action Centre (BLAC), an organization that provides free legal services to low or no income Black Ontarians.
The remainder of the funds were given to the Black Creators Fund, an initiative that is dear to Patricia and provides grants for Black artists in Toronto.
"We did the pop-up and raised money to give back to the community--[but] it wasn't just that. It was the fact that after months of people being so sad and stuck at home, this was something that brought the community together and connected people. It was amazing to see how many people came out. People that I don't know were sharing it on social media. People came from all parts of the city and it was amazing to see," says Yeboah.
The pop-up menu features several traditional Ghanaian dishes that you can't find here in Toronto. Patricia and her mother cook all of the food together, including jollof, rice in a tomato stew; kelewele (red red), fried plantains with spicy stewed beans; waakye, rice and black eyed peas cooked in millet leaves and served with a tomato stew; and yams fries served with a signature shito hot sauce.
"A lot of it is based off of what we eat at home but also things that have become a favourite," says Yeboah, who recalls childhood memories of her mother always buying her kelewele (red red) on her way home from work in the markets.
"We picked the things that we connected to the most. It is a labour of love that we know that everyone will love and connect in a different way and create their own stories," she continues.
Between pop-ups, Mama Akua's is cooking every Sunday to fill community fridges and taking personal orders for those who wanted to get a taste authentic Ghanaian food.
The second pop-up is happening at Stackt Market this Saturday October 3 at 28 Bathurst Street from 2pm until sellout, with live music from Jenno Christian, Nino Brown, Dre Ngozi and MKB.
Proceeds from the pop-up will be going towards Patricia's grandmother's funeral expenses in Ghana, who tragically passed away in May.
"It is important for us that we are supporting the community that has put the [same] effort into supporting us as well".
