Food and drink outlets
Black History Month
Black History 2026
Food brings us together. Stories tell us why. We are using this Black History Month to explore Black Britain: the people who changed what we eat, and explore the flavours and food traditions that have travelled to Britain, shaped our food culture and continue to influence what we eat today.
From Caribbean recipes brought to Britain by generations of families, to African ingredients finding their way into British kitchens, restaurants and food businesses, food can tell us a lot about people, migration, identity, entrepreneurship and community.
Throughout October, customers will discover the people who challenged perceptions, the ingredients that travelled across continents and the dishes that have become part of Britain's diverse food culture.
Food travels. Stories travel. Culture travels.
People
Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones – The Black Farmer
A British farmer, food entrepreneur and founder of The Black Farmer brand. Born in Jamaica and arriving in Britain as a child, he went on to build a successful career in television and food before establishing his own farming and food business.
He has challenged traditional perceptions of what a British farmer looks like, while championing diversity, representation and inclusion within the UK’s food and farming industry. His journey also reflects the contribution of the Windrush generation and the lasting impact of Black British communities on the UK’s food culture.
DID YOU KNOW?
The students, from Leicester Law School provide free legal advice to help members of the Windrush generation and Commonwealth citizens navigate and apply for the UK Government's Windrush Compensation Scheme.
The Windrush Compensation Scheme was set up to support people who came to the UK from Commonwealth countries after the Second World War to help rebuild the country. Many later faced difficulties proving their right to live and work here, with some wrongly losing their jobs, homes and access to services. This injustice became known as the Windrush Scandal.
Levi Roots – The sauce that went mainstream
From Carnival to supermarket shelves, Levi Roots turned a family jerk-sauce recipe, inspired by his grandmother in Jamaica, into Reggae Reggae Sauce. He initially made the sauce at home and sold it at Notting Hill Carnival before appearing on Dragons' Den and securing a Sainsbury's contract in 2007.
Levi Roots didn't just create a sauce – he helped bring Caribbean flavour into British kitchens.
DID YOU KNOW?
From ‘Dragons’ Den’ to your lunch on campus! Levi Roots’ famous Reggae Reggae sauce helped bring Caribbean-inspired flavours to supermarket shelves across the country, and you can enjoy it right here on campus. Our mac and cheese with jerk chicken topper, from our Soul outlet, is finished with a generous helping of Reggae Reggae sauce.
Lerato Umah-Shaylor – Celebrating Africa's diverse food cultures
Lerato has many titles to her name; chef, food writer and cookbook author who grew up in West Africa and the UK. Her book ‘Africana’ celebrates recipes and stories from across the African continent, and she has used supper clubs and cookery classes to introduce people to its varied cuisines.
DID YOU KNOW?
Bespoke Hospitality
For two years now, our chefs have provided the menu for the Res Life West African food event. At the latest one this year, our chefs got inspiration from Ghanaian and Nigerian cultural cuisines, to provide jollof rice, plantain crisps, chargrilled marinated chicken finished on the BBQ with spiced groundnut sauce, squash and plantain kelewele.
For bespoke functions, our chefs use optimal seasonal produce whenever they can.
If you would like to order hospitality, you can make a booking today.
Andi Oliver – Bringing Caribbean food to the mainstream
Andi Oliver is a London-born chef, broadcaster and restaurateur of Antiguan heritage. Her restaurant, Wadadli Kitchen, celebrates Caribbean food, including dishes such as curry goat loaded fries and seafood boil, while she has also become widely recognised through Great British Menu on TV.
She is helping change the perception of Caribbean food in Britain, showing that Caribbean cooking belongs everywhere from family kitchens and high streets to some of Britain's biggest food platforms.
Ainsley Harriott – Making global flavours accessible
He became a household name through programmes including ‘Ready, Steady, Cook’ and has written numerous cookbooks, including ‘Ainsley's Caribbean Kitchen’. His food range is also sold in UK supermarkets, bringing globally inspired flavours into everyday cooking.
Ainsley Harriott helped bring different flavours into everyday British kitchens, making cooking feel accessible, fun and achievable.
Before TikTok food trends, there was Ainsley.
Zoe Adjonyoh – Putting Ghanaian food on the map
A writer and cook of Ghanaian and Irish heritage, Zoe built her food business around sharing Ghanaian cuisine with wider audiences in Britain. Her work has explored both her family heritage and the challenges of getting people to recognise and appreciate Ghanaian food.
Rustie Lee – One of Britain's first Caribbean TV chefs
Rustie Lee was bringing Caribbean food and personality into British homes through television long before today's explosion of food content.
Before Caribbean food was mainstream, people were already cooking and sharing it thanks to Rustie Lee.
She ran a Caribbean restaurant in Birmingham and began showcasing Caribbean cooking on TV in the 1980s, including on ‘Pebble Mill at One’ and ‘TV-am’. These were two landmark TV programmes that trailblazed morning and daytime television in the UK.
The National Windrush Museum currently highlights Rustie Lee as a pioneer of Caribbean food culture.
Jimi Famurewa – The stories behind Black African London
Jimi Famurewa is a British Nigerian food writer, broadcaster and former Evening Standard restaurant critic. In his book Settlers: Journeys Through the Food, Faith and Culture of Black African London, he explores the lives and experiences of Black African communities in London, including the role food plays in culture, identity and a sense of belonging.
You may also recognise him as a regular guest judge on BBC One's MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals, or from Channel 4's The Great Cookbook Challenge with Jamie Oliver, where he was one of the lead judges.
You may also recognise him as a regular guest judge on BBC One's MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals, or from Channel 4's The Great Cookbook Challenge with Jamie Oliver, where he was one of the lead judges.
William Chilila – Bringing West African flavours to new audiences
William Chilila is a Zambian-born chef who has helped bring West African and African food traditions to new audiences in Britain. His cooking combines traditional flavours and ingredients with contemporary techniques, showing that African food is diverse, creative and capable of sitting confidently alongside any other cuisine.
Food can challenge perceptions and create a deeper understanding of culture. By bringing African flavours and food traditions into contemporary British dining, William is helping more people discover the stories, ingredients and culinary traditions behind the food.
You may have tried jollof rice, plantain, egusi or another African dishes without knowing much about the story behind it. Chefs like William help bring those flavours to new audiences, giving people the opportunity to discover something unfamiliar, share food with others and see African cuisine in a different light.
Riaz Phillips – Telling the stories behind the food
Riaz doesn't just cook food, he documents the people and stories behind it.
He's a food writer and author who has documented Caribbean food culture in Britain, and during Covid created ‘Community Comfort’, a digital cookbook bringing together more than 100 recipes from cooks from migrant backgrounds.
Sometimes changing what we eat starts with telling people the stories behind the food.
Ingredients
Groundnuts / Peanuts – An ingredient with a journey
You might know peanuts as a snack, but they have travelled through food cultures around the world and are used in very different ways. The humble peanut has travelled a long way.
In West Africa, groundnuts have been an important ingredient for generations, featuring in dishes such as maafe, a rich groundnut-based stew.
Peanuts also feature in satay sauces found across Southeast Asian cuisines, where they are used to create the rich, nutty sauce many of us know today.
And you might have already tasted that journey on campus. Our Wholesome menu includes Cantonese beef satay, bringing together tender beef with a rich satay sauce.
The dish isn't an African dish – but the peanut in your satay sauce gives us a chance to explore how one ingredient can have completely different stories and traditions around the world.
From Ethiopia to Leicester. From coffee plant to campus cup.
Coffee has deep historical roots in Ethiopia, where coffee plants are native and coffee has been part of Ethiopian culture and traditions for centuries. Ethiopian coffee culture is particularly rich, with coffee ceremonies playing an important role in bringing people together, welcoming guests and creating time to connect.
From Ethiopia, coffee travelled across the world, becoming one of the most widely enjoyed drinks today.
The next time you’re ordering your usual here, you're taking part in a story that began thousands of miles away. Take a moment to think about the journey behind it, the people, places, cultures and traditions that have helped make coffee part of everyday life around the world.
Jerk chicken – from Caribbean tradition to British favourite
Jerk cooking has its roots in Jamaica and has become a familiar part of Britain's food culture. Caribbean communities brought their recipes, spices and cooking traditions to Britain, with jerk chicken moving from home kitchens and Caribbean restaurants into mainstream British food culture.
You might know it as the jerk chicken you grab for lunch today, but behind the dish is a story of migration, family, entrepreneurship and generations of Caribbean culture being shared in Britain.
DID YOU KNOW?
The story behind the Scotch bonnet
You might recognise it from your favourite Caribbean dish, but scotch bonnet peppers are part of a much bigger story.
As Caribbean communities established themselves in Britain following the Windrush generation, they brought their recipes, ingredients and food traditions with them. Over time, those flavours became part of the food culture we all enjoy today.
So next time you taste that heat, remember the story behind it. Get mac and cheese with a jerk chicken from Soul today.
Coconut - The ingredient that travelled
From tropical coastlines to kitchens around the world, coconut has travelled through generations of food cultures.
Coconut is an important ingredient in many Caribbean cuisines, where coconut milk, coconut water and the coconut flesh are used in everything from savoury dishes and rice to desserts and drinks.
But coconut's story doesn't belong to one place. It has become part of food traditions across Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and beyond.
DID YOU KNOW?
You might have tasted it on campus
At Soul, coconut is one of the flavours that comes together in our jerk-inspired dish, our Soul signature sauce on our Supreme One burger, and you can choose it for your boneless wings.
It's a reminder that the food we enjoy today is often the result of ingredients, people and traditions travelling and meeting along the way.
Mango - A taste of the tropics
Sweet, juicy and instantly recognisable, mango is enjoyed across the world.
Originally from South Asia, mango travelled far beyond its origins and became part of food cultures in tropical regions including the Caribbean and parts of Africa.
Today, you'll find mango in everything from drinks and desserts to spicy sauces and savoury dishes.
DID YOU KNOW?
You might have tasted its journey on campus.
Mango is one of the flavours used alongside jerk, coconut, lime and coriander in the signature sauce at Soul.
It's a great example of how food evolves when ingredients travel and different culinary traditions meet from one part of the world to many.
Sweet potato - A journey across continents
You might think of sweet potato as a familiar vegetable, something you roast, mash, turn into fries or add to soup.
But this humble ingredient has travelled a long way.
Sweet potato originated in the Americas before spreading to other parts of the world. Over time, it became an important food crop in countries across Africa and beyond, finding its way into different food traditions and everyday cooking.
Its story is a reminder that the foods we know today aren't always native to the places where we eat them. Ingredients travel, people travel, and food traditions evolve along the way.
DID YOU KNOW?
You might have spotted it on campus.
Sweet potato features in dishes across our Food and Drink menu, including our butternut squash and sweet potato soup at Delicious, our sweet potato, olive, green bean and cherry tomato salad made in-house, and our roasted butternut squash and sweet potato salad also made in-house.