Black business owners in Lawrence reflect on how they have been operating during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amber Brown is opening a Lawrence community kitchen in an effort to give fellow food entrepreneurs a space where they can obtain the food licensing necessary to sell their products to the public.

Local establishments, such as the Lawrence Public Library and other small businesses, are still offering family friendly activities and services that also tailor to COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. 

After three years of artisanal doughnuts and cocktails, Wake the Dead Breakfast Bar closed its doors on Friday, March 20. It is the first business in the city to permanently close as a result of the COVID-19 stay-at-home order. 

The Senior Resource Center in Douglas County is working to help senior citizens get food and supplies during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Just Food is giving people two weeks worth of pre-packaged groceries through a drive-thru service. It has plans to expand its services to Franklin and Leavenworth counties.

Bon Appétit is a food lifestyle brand that has become increasingly popular among young people, including KU students. The brand has over 11.4 million social media followers and 4.1 million Youtube subscribers. 

Here is a comprehensive list of all Lawrence restaurants that have converted to delivery and takeout only or have closed due to the novel coronavirus.

Lawrence has a variety of businesses that offer trivia night events throughout the week.

The owners of Papa Keno’s Pizzeria are planning to move their restaurant this summer into a new space on Mass Street, featuring an upstairs mezzanine and an outdoor front patio. 

Big Mill is a new 19th-century Dutch-style windmill-inspired restaurant that serves items such as burgers, hot dogs and Detroit-style pizza.

Owner of Decade coffee shop, Louis Wigen-Toccalino, is opening a new restaurant called Cellar Door Cafe.

Concluding 50 years of service, the owner of Border Bandido, a Tex-Mex restaurant on W. 23rd St. in Lawrence, announced it will close its doors in June.

With the Common Ground program, Lawrence has used volunteer work to make use of deserted plots of land for community gardens

Kelli Huslig opened Uplift Coffee Shop after realizing she always had a passion for coffee and people, and she said the goal is to create a positive environment where people in the Lawrence community can unwind and socialize.