Jackee Harry praised their Sweet Potato Bread Pudding on the Food Network show, Guilty Pleasures. “We were recognized for our Sweet Potato Cornbread as the must-have Thanksgiving pick for North Carolina ,” Vivián says. Since then, their food has gained regional and national media attention. The restaurant’s menu, offering Southern and soul food spiced with Chef Stephanie’s special touches, drew crowds from the beginning. In January 2003, Sweet Potatoes opened for business. What they suggested … was that we open a hot dog or hamburger stand.”īut with the help of Winston-Salem’s commissioner of cultural arts, Philip Hanes, they obtained loans from the city and an organization spearheading the redevelopment of the downtown area. “No, the banks and the city loan people were having none of that. But others had very little confidence in our ability,” Stephanie remembers. “I never had the chance to cook what I grew up eating … Southern food.” It was run-down and needed a lot of work. They found the space they wanted on Trade Street in the hip new Arts District. So the two women moved to Winston-Salem with the idea of opening a restaurant. “I was just sitting in the kitchen one day and said, ‘It’s time to go home.
She became familiar with Italian, Mediterranean and French cuisines. “We traveled from one end of the country to the other and back - Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, Arizona and Maryland,” Stephanie remembers. Stephanie admits she wasn’t much of a cook to begin with - “For the most part, I burnt everything I cooked” - so she studied culinary arts at Baltimore International College. With no obvious career path in mind, they decided to try the restaurant business. However, acting fame wasn’t in the cards. In fact, Stephanie studied at the East Carolina University Drama department and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. Neither Stephanie nor Vivián started out intending to open a restaurant. Stephanie Tyson (left) and Vivián Joiner at their Winston-Salem restaurant.
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