Minnie D’s ‘pay it forward’ hopes to nourish customers and the community

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From left to right: Cordell Richardson and Deandra Scot of Minnie D’s. (Nick Longworth/FOX 9)

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A new restaurant in Minneapolis’ Harrison neighborhood is the passion project of a hardworking duo that they hope will make a positive impact on their community through a “pay it forward” program that allows some people to eat for free.

Minnie Veli D’s, located at 1825 Glenwood Ave., specializes in sliders and sides such as onion rings and fries.

But the modest storefront now operated by Cordell Richardson and Deandra Scott has an ambitious goal: to help feed as many people as possible through the goodwill of the surrounding community.

On the wall near the kitchen is a ‘pay it forward’ sign that allows current customers to purchase a meal (or something of their choice from the menu) and leave it for the next person. No matter how big or small, someone else can get a meal from what’s on the plate without asking.

“It doesn’t matter who you are, you gotta eat. Your race doesn’t matter, your financial status doesn’t matter. None of that matters,” Richardson said.

An employee brought the idea to him, Richardson says, but much of the inspiration dates back to his mother’s kitchen when he was growing up.

“My mother always cooked a lot of food. My mother was the type of person who wouldn’t let anyone go hungry. You could go there right now, and there will be food,” he said. “For me, it’s the satisfaction of serving people and serving really good food. That’s my drug of choice.”

Richardson and Scott started in 2021 as a food truck that regularly attended events.

“From Rosemount to Hastings – wherever people wanted us, we went and fed them,” Richardson said. “We wanted to start and build the idea and go from there.”

A grand opening took place on May 4 in the presence of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

Officially open and serving the public – paying or not – both Richardson and Scott believe they have found the perfect place to open their first location, and maybe help some people along the way.