Whether you’re craving a hoagy from the renowned Home of the Hoagy, or looking for your next sweet treat from Brown Sugar Bakery, every corner of the South Side has a food, desert, or drink to try.
As more local businesses plant and grow their roots in South Side communities, the range of cuisines is expanding. But the cornerstones of each business are alike: to offer services and experiences that are not as accessible on the South Side, and to find ways to function as community hubs in their neighborhoods.
So I stopped by Erin’s Cup & Cookies and Soul Ramen: two new, Black and women-led restaurants have set their sights on bringing unique experiences and gathering spaces to the South Side.
Erin’s Cup & Cookies
Erin’s Cup & Cookies, formerly known as Erin’s Cup, has been brewing in the Morgan Park community since November 2023, spearheaded by the ambitious, then-seventeen-year-old Erin Polk. The entrepreneurial spirit was engrained in Polk early on as she watched her mother grow her catering company, H&B Catering. After helping her mother with catering events, Polk was inspired to create her own business venture.
“I did love coffee, and I did love to bake,” Polk said then. “I was good, so I decided to combine my skills.”
For Erin’s Cup’s initial opening in 2023, Polk and her business partner, Khale Hunter, were co-owners of the establishment and shared upkeep responsibilities. While Polk finished up her classes at De La Salle Institute, she and Hunter divided tasks: she handled menu curation and hired new workers, while Hunter held down the day-to-day responsibilities.
Her goal for Erin’s Cup then was to bring a notable “North Side” experience to the South Side. The shop offers a lending library, all-day Karaoke Fridays for those who want to belt their favorite tunes, and a food donation box for those who need or want to donate food.
“I saw Morgan Park as an opportunity for me to thrive and grow and bring something nice here. Somewhere where the community could gather and have a place to stay,” Polk said.
Then, Polk aspired to pursue a degree in psychology at Georgia State University. Now, at 20 years old, the goal hasn’t changed for Polk. However, the circumstances took a turn after Hunter’s decision to leave the city in 2025. A temporary hiatus fell on the shop as Polk worked on a new approach to the brand. Last June saw the relaunch with a new name, a fresh coat of paint, and a cartoon likeness of Polk over the entrance.
Polk has taken over full responsibilities as owner and is now in the establishment for the day-to-day operations—which is an adjustment that she likes, from monitoring inventory to marketing the business.
“It’s pretty cool, I’m not going to lie. Khale did most of the day-to-day operational things like physically being in the store. The only thing that has really changed is me being here everyday. I get a lot of customer interaction,” Polk said. “I’m still trying to figure that stuff out.”
Since taking a semester off from her on-campus studies (where she’s changed her major to business), Polk has continued to ensure Erin’s Cup & Cookies functions as a community hub.
More recently, Polk has expanded the shop’s community efforts by partnering with Youth Peace Center of Roseland to give local teens the chance to become fully trained baristas.
“I’m taking them in, training them on how to become a barista, and getting them their certification and everything. After their program distributes them somewhere else, they’ll have the certification and everything,” Polk said.
Polk has new ideas for the establishment up her sleeves including new seasonal drinks, and decorations for the seating area. And she’s already looking forward to the summer.
“When it gets warmer out, I’m going to decorate the outside seating area and keep cornhole and other games out there when people want to sit out. I’m excited for that,” Polk said.
Soul Ramen
While Polk continues to navigate what she intends to do with her establishment in the long run, a ramen establishment will soon open in Bronzeville. Airian McDuffy, a realtor and entrepreneur, created the concept of Soul Ramen to bring people together and follow her foodie passion.
“People would say it’s hard, but I believe that this has been the easiest thing. It’s been long, but it’s been easy compared to other things,” McDuffy said. “That’s when you know that it’s your calling or purpose. Even if it’s a seasonal calling or purpose, this has been working out versus everything else in my life.”
When McDuffy came up with the soul food and ramen-fused concept for Soul Ramen, she refused to let it pass her by.
“In 2022, I took a ‘How to Open Up a Restaurant’ class. I met my senior culinary advisor, Chef Raheem, and we had a pop-up in 2023, and it was phenomenal,” McDuffy said. “ We also did a festival in 2024.People have been anticipating and raving about it. Now, in 2026, with the space built out, Chef Lance is the culinary director and culture director. We will definitely have some elevated events, activations, and bomb food.”
McDuffy’s connection to ramen began in her childhood, where instant ramen was one of the only dishes she could make herself. And as she continued to make the dish over the years, McDuffy continued to experiment with the ingredients.
“I would always get creative with [ramen] as a little girl. Then, in dorm rooms, we would use what we had, because we didn’t want to keep eating the same flavor all the time,” McDuffy said. “Then, I got into the real world and [went] to ramen bars, and I’m like ‘This is not the nostalgia I This is not the creativity that I’m used to from homestyle.’ I started to see jerk teriyaki ramen on YouTube, tried it, and loved it. I kept trying it, trying it, and trying it…”
The experimentation of ramen dishes will be the cornerstone of Soul Ramen as their menu will feature gumbo ramen, jerk ramen, oxtail ramen, and many other concoctions. McDuffy also aspires to dedicate a ramen dish specifically to Chicago.
“We’ll play around with some things. We might even have a South Side [ramen.] I really want to do an Italian beef one, that’s for Chicago,” McDuffy said.
“We’re going to have a lot of personality from the staff to the menu to the service. The service is going to be the personality,” McDuffy said.
Soul Ramen was not only the first Black woman-owned ramen shop in Chicago (and the Midwest), but the second one in the nation. This made the location in Bronzeville important for McDuffy.
“Bronzeville is full of culture. It’s full of revolution,” McDuffy said. “Bronzeville historically has been known for revolution and Black enterprises, so I think Bronzeville was the perfect location for a staple like this.”
McDuffy said her goal is for Soul Ramen to be a space for creative people to connect, network, and socialize without having to travel outside of the South Side. She also believes this space will work as a bridge for Millennial and Gen Z working professionals.
“Once it’s open to the public, I want to create space for creatives like myself to go similar to Soho [House] without having to go on the West Loop,” McDuffy said. “I want to remind people that you can do whatever you want to do. If it’s a crazy idea, do it!”
Erin’s Cup & Cookies. 1212 W 111th St. Monday–Friday, 7am–3pm. (312) 248-5499 instagram.com/erins_cup
Soul Ramen Chicago is opening soon at 508 E Pershing Rd. Follow instagram.com/soulramenchi or visit www.soulramenchicago.com for updates.
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Layla Brown-Clark is a Morgan Park journalist passionate about telling arts and culture and news stories about the city’s South Side.
