Keon Williams, The First Black Franchisee Of Tacos 4 Life, Adds Charlotte Location

Looks like we're heading to Dilworth!

Business owner Keon Williams, 32, is the youngest and first Black franchisee to open a location of the popular Tacos 4 Life chain in Charlotte, NC, QCity Metro reports.

The national restaurant serves “craft tacos for a cause” from 19 locations, including three others in the Queen City. But Williams is the first Black owner to open up shop in the lavish Dilworth area with the goal of adding more diversity to the already historic neighborhood.

“I wanted to come here. I know that there aren’t any Black businesses or food businesses in this area,” Williams said. “I wanted to be that beacon of change and that beacon of light.”

Williams thrives off of service. Identifying as a Christian, Taco 4 Life’s Meal 4 Meal program drove Williams closer to the company. According to WCCB, his Dilworth location donates the cost of a MannaPack Rice meal to Feed My Starving Children—an organization that supplies food to families in over 70 countries with the sale of most meals.

The donated meals, consisting of rice, vitamins, soy, and vegetables, are distributed to feeding centers, orphanages, schools, and refugee camps in over 90 countries.

“We have the opportunity to be a part of the solution of bringing these necessities to communities,” Williams said. “Our Meal 4 Meal program has already served over 38,000,000 meals and with our new location in Dilworth, I wait with an expectant heart to see the impact that we all have together.”

With a wide range of offerings on the menu at the hands of Chef Tommi Davis—including Korean BBQ, crab cakes, blackened mahi-mahi, and fried chicken burritos—Williams wants the 3,000-square-foot location to make a difference in the Charlotte community and beyond. It’s something that he is used to.

Williams is following the footsteps of his grandfather’s hoagie shop and his father’s sub shop, Chat and Chew, which was a staple on Charlotte’s westside. “I watched them, the growing pains, the goods and the bads,” said Williams, who worked at both hops.

However, one thing he knows is that “food brings fellowship; food brings community.”

The new location opened Jan. 7. It’s open Monday through Saturday. The first meal-packing event at Williams’ location will be in March 2025.