Little Liberia, an Afro-fusion pop-up restaurant in metro Detroit, is getting a $100,000 grand prize from Comerica Bank in the 2022 Comerica Hatch Detroit Contest. The money will be used to open a brick-and-mortar business in Detroit. The owners were looking for a permanent space to bring Liberia’s rich multicultural cuisines to metro Detroit.

Little Liberia was announced as the winner in front of a live audience at the contest’s Hatch Off event that took place Thursday, July 21 at the Wayne State University Industry Innovation Center in Detroit. The event functions similarly to a ‘Shark Tank’ style pitching competition where the top five businesses had the opportunity to present their business pitch to …

Little Liberia is an Afro-fusion pop-up restaurant owned and founded by Ameneh Marhaba. She is looking to find a permanent space to introduce Liberia’s rich multicultural cuisines to the people of Metro Detroit. They serve authentic Liberian dishes, a cuisine whose heritage is a mixture of African, Caribbean, and Antebellum-South African American influences.

Thursday night in TechTown, chef and entrepreneur Ameneh Marhaba was named the winner of $100,000 in the weeks-long Hatch Detroit contest. In an emotional, passionate pitch to a panel of judges, she told her story of recently losing her father, who brought his family to the United States from post-war Liberia for a chance at a better life.

Ameneh Marhaba cried tears of joy as she accepted a $100,000 check after winning a competition Thursday, where she pitched her business, Little Liberia.

“My hope for the future is a brick and mortar that allows guests to come through the front doors, have a plate of food, and learn about Liberia without realizing it. There are many tribes in Liberia, and in my space, I envision having a tribal wall listing where each specific food dish comes from. As guests look at the …