2 Chainz is kicking off a restaurant residency program in Las Vegas to spotlight Black chefs nationwide with Pepsi Dig In.
Starting Sept. 30, 2 Chainz will bring one of his favorite dishes—Blackened Salmon Alfredo Pasta— from his Atlanta restaurant Esco Restaurant & Tapas to Mandalay Bay’s Libertine Social and Luxor’s Public House for four weeks.
It’s among the exclusive dishes from Black-owned restaurants across the country taking part in PEPSI Dig In’s Restaurant Royalty Residency program in Las Vegas. Following
last year’s success, Pepsi Dig In brings six new restaurants and their concepts to MGM Resorts International for the first time, including an addition from the multiplatinum Grammy Award-winning rapper 2 Chainz.With the initiative bringing opportunities and awareness to Black-owned restaurants on a national scale, 2 Chainz saw the significance of joining the second edition.
“This initiative [is] to really help out Black restaurants and really try to develop and serve Black cuisines in Vegas and to people around the world,” 2 Chainz tells BLACK ENTERPRISE.
“The reason that I’m involved is because I have my own restaurant, obviously, I’m Black.”
The “I’m Different” rapper is an avid foodie who
enjoys introducing new cuisines to his followers and restaurant patrons. He naturally “aligned” with the restaurant residency and knew the right dish to share with the Las Vegas crowd from his Escos menu.“It feels very organic. Vegas is a place where I have a residency. I’m out there, you know, 12, 13 times a year,” 2 Chainz says.
“And so now I have a place to go and try some great dishes, including one of mine from my restaurant, Escobar, which is the salmon alfredo.”
With his seven years in the restaurant industry, 2 Chainz knows the hurdles and challenges to keep the doors open. But he’s standing the test of time thanks to running a restaurant where “the energy and the atmosphere matches the food in the body.”
This year’s Pepsi Dig In Restaurant Royalty Residency will be hosted at Mandalay Bay’s Libertine Social and Luxor’s Public House and run from Sept. 30 through Feb. 6. The residency features mouthwatering dishes from Black-owned eateries across the country, including 2 Chainz’ Esco Restaurant & Tapas based in Atlanta, and Cranky Granny’s Sweet Rolls from Pflugerville, TX.
Other Black chefs who will be featured include Taylor’s Tacos from Chicago, Blk Swan from Baltimore, LoLo’s on The Water based in New York, and Bridgetown Roti in Los Angeles.