Black, White, and the Grey
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Growing up in Texas in a diverse community that celebrates all things delicious, I love stories about food – the triumphant, against-all-odds kind of stories that unpack complex human experiences.
Black, White, and the Grey is one such story. This 304-page memoir offers an incredible narrative about race, gender, class, and culture. Although the story itself is not set in Texas, it illustrates an amazing parallel to many local food stories and characters found in the Lone State State.
An engrossing read, Black, White, and the Grey tells the story of a Black chef from Queens and a white entrepreneur from Staten Island, who come together to set up The Grey, a restaurant in the Deep South with a racial past. In the process, they hope to spark important conversations and overcome long-held biases.
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An Unlikely Partnership
Mashama Bailey is a young Black woman whose unbridled success in the culinary world was unexpected to say the least. With the James Beard award in her kitty, Chef Bailey cradles a dream of running her own kitchen. On the other hand, co-author John “Johno” Morisano is an Italian-American businessman with a vision. In Savannah, Morisano buys a dilapidated bus station with a painful history of segregation. His plan? To open a restaurant in that very spot and have a Black female chef head the kitchen.
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A "Grey" Area
Located in Savannah, Georgia, The Grey opened its doors in 2015 and was quick to receive critical appreciation. The love kept coming as the years went by, with the Art Deco restaurant featuring on several acclaimed “best restaurant” lists across the country. During the pandemic, Esquire even named it one of the 100 restaurants America cannot afford to lose. While the food here truly is incredible, it’s the story behind the origins of the restaurant that formed a far-reaching imprint on American culture as it stands today. Once a segregated Greyhound bus station located at the intersection of a tourist spot and an African-American neighborhood, today The Grey attempts to heal and bring together people from diverse backgrounds through the restorative powers of good food.
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Between the Lines
Black, White and the Grey is more than just a “making-of” memoir. The book prioritizes the up-and-coming relationship between two unlikely partners who come from extremely different worlds. Alternating between Morisano’s thoughts in plain font and Bailey’s musings in a bold typeface, the book presents these individuals’ points of view as two sides of the same coin. This nascent partnership faces days of discomfort, disapproval, and disagreement before finding itself on more stable ground. As readers, we witness these tensions in a raw, unfiltered manner.
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Some of these conversations are almost uncomfortable to get through, as the writers come to terms with their own shortcomings and preconceived notions. In an attempt to “preserve” the history of the restaurant, Morisano wishes to retain the original racial signage of the “colored waiting room”. However, Bailey, along with other members of the team, argue that the sign would put customers and every Black staff member in a deeply uncomfortable position. Good sense prevails, and the sign is altered to “waiting room”.
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Trust issues on Bailey’s part prevent her from finding her voice in the business. She has trouble lowering her guard and communicating clearly with her co-workers. During the early days of the project, she tends to shy away from being a leader or a hands-on partner. This results in some high-tension arguments and even raises doubts about her level of commitment.
The two writers offer ample background into their family histories that are marred with trauma, abuse, and discrimination that continue to impact their day-to-day lives today. It would have been a convenient editing decision to simply gloss over the ugly parts, or dismiss them as teething problems of a new business – but this book is different. Instead, these uncomfortable truths are revealed in intricate detail, with great insight being offered into leadership diversity, functional communication, and navigating personal biases for a better tomorrow.
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Each chapter ends with a recipe from the restaurant’s menu that is strongly related to the chapter itself. The writers’ lively, conversational narrative style makes for an effortless reading experience. On the whole, Black, White and The Grey straddles the line between business guide, memoir, and cookbook. Through it all, the book remains deeply poignant and positions itself as an inspiration to aspiring chefs and restaurateurs who face their own challenges and hardships.
Interested in the book? Grab Black, White, and the Grey from Amazon here.
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