LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On the corner of Logan Street and East Broadway, Locals Food Hub and Pizza Pub is fired up. The ovens, but also the owners' passion, are filling the need for fresh food in Smoketown, a federally classified food desert.
Not with the pizzeria up front, but the grocery in the back.
"I feel good; I was coming from a meeting in Shelby Park, going back to Butchertown," resident Brian Goodwin said. "Was able to pop in here easily. We're dying for this stuff."
Co-owner Birch Bragg believed barriers to homegrown produce should be lower.
"You're not gonna see watermelons from Mexico in January here; you're gonna see what is being grown all throughout the state and the commonwealth here in Kentucky," Bragg said.
While those goods come at a premium other places, there's several ways Locals lowers the price.
A pay-it-forward board lets customers leave behind money for anyone who needs it.
And while the business waits on its SNAP certification from the federal government, a donation from neighborhood landscaper Beargrass Thunder fills in the gaps.
"So anybody who walks in here that has a SNAP card, since we can't take SNAP yet, cause we're waiting on site inspection, we can give you a $20 voucher that can be spent right now," Bragg explained.
When SNAP clears, anyone with those benefits can triple their money using it at Locals.
"To have $60 dollars worth of food if they only spend $20 on their SNAP card," Bragg said. "Talk about food access, talk about programs that mean something and make a real impact from day one. That's what we're trying to do here at Locals Food Hub and Pizza Pub."
"Oh, they're the real deal," Israel McCullough, one of the first customers, said. "I have gotten to know these folks since the moment I walked in this morning. They have a love and a heart for our state, our community, and for the neighbors who live in Smoketown, Shelby Park and beyond. They're really about bringing the mission of bringing fresh food... into our community."
It's a glimmer of hope for the neighborhood after plans for a community-owned grocery store five blocks away fell through.
Locals is open every day of the week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.
The business has its grand opening this Friday when they'll be giving out free meals to people in need.
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