The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce is once again partnering with Grubhub and the Grubhub Community Fund to extend “a vital lifeline” to America’s LGBTQ-owned restaurants and bars serving food through the NGLCC Community Impact Grant Program. The East Coast application period for the grants launched today (Wednesday, May 15).

These grants — ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 — offer funding for a variety of purposes, including supporting employee wages and incentives, maintaining or upgrading existing infrastructure, enabling marketing and PR efforts and more.

NGLCC Co-Founder & President Justin Nelson said, “We often say at NGLCC that if you can buy it, an LGBTQ-owned business can supply it. This rings especially true for LGBTQ-owned restaurants and food-serving establishments across America, which play a vital role in their communities.

“We’re thrilled to once again collaborate on this program, thanks to the generous support of the Grubhub Community Fund, to offer grants that will benefit businesses nationwide,” Nelson added.

Dave Tovar, Grubhub’s senior vice president of communications and government relations, said, “Grubhub’s partnership with NGLCC continues to go on from strength to strength over the years, and we’re really proud of the impact this initiative has had on LGBTQ-owned businesses nationwide,.

“We are inspired by countless stories of how these grants empower independent restaurants to thrive and make meaningful contributions to their communities,” he continued. “We know this year’s grant recipients will do incredible things with the funds they receive as this program continues to grow.”

North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce CEO Tony Vedda said, “Despite the fact that small enterprises are the leading providers of new jobs nationwide, they continue to face significant challenges due to the combined effects of the pandemic and rising inflation. When given the opportunity, we were eager to take part in the NGLCC Community Impact Grant Program for a third year.”
So far, Vedda noted, the program has awarded “$85,000 in grants to worthy North Texas LGBT and allied businesses through the North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce. This year, we’re intensifying our outreach to local restaurant owners to ensure they’re informed about this initiative.”

The NGLCC has set a goal to allocate 30 percent of the funds to businesses owned by people of color and transgender and gender-expansive (TGX) individuals. Applications for East Coast establishments launched on April 30, and applications for the Central U.S. will opened this month. Applications for the West Coast will roll out in June.

Restaurants wishing to learn more about applying for grants should visit the NGLCC website.

The NGLCC’s network of nearly 55 affiliate chambers across America will once again help amplify this grant opportunity to support local restaurants. Those local chambers will again benefit from this initiative’s Affiliate Chamber Fund. In addition to supporting local efforts to share the grant opportunity, this fund has and will continue to enable any establishment that receives a grant that is not currently a member of an NGLCC local affiliate chamber to have one year of membership paid.

— Tammye Nash