Big News: The Root Cafe Wins $150,000 Grant for Continued Expansion

The Root Café announced today that they have received a $150,000 grant from Chase’s Mission Main Street project.
The Root has made a home in Little Rock’s South Main neighborhood as a culinary staple. The eatery acted as one of Central Arkansas’ pioneers in sourcing local food when it opened back in 2011 by owners Jack and Corri Sundell.  On any given lunch hour, one can often find a line spilling out the door, and locals have been clamoring for dinner hours for quite some time.
Right before Christmas, The Root Café was announced as the winner of HLN’s documentary “Growing America: A Journey to Success.” This resulted in the receipt a $25,000 grant from the viewer-fueled contest. The restaurant had access to teams made of MBA students from top schools around the country that acted as consultants. Able to utilize the business advise, the Sundells announced today that they plan on adding a kitchen and expanding indoor seating – the space currently only holds about 15 individuals. And more.
Now The Root Cafe adds an additional $150,000 grant to increase expansion efforts started with the initial grant.
“We have been meeting with teams of consultants and architects about the layout and design. We are hoping to introduce the new space sometime later this year,” owner Corri Sundell tells us.
Chase’s grant program provides an opportunity for 20 small business owners to take their businesses to new heights by receiving an equal share of $3 million in grant funds. Also, all eligible applicants received access to a free marketing toolkit containing useful information and assets to help them promote their small businesses more effectively.
Nearly 25,000 business owners from all 50 states submitted applications for this year’s Mission Main Street Grants program, and more than 1.6 million votes were cast for participating small businesses. A diverse team of small business experts selected the grant recipients from the group of eligible businesses that received at least 250 votes.
The work is expect to be complete in later this year. Until then, the Root will operate under normal business hours at its 1500 S. Main location. The café will be open 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

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