“Local Culinary Entrepreneurs invited to Submit Business Plans for a Chance at Winning Start-up Funding, Space at Mess Hall, & More”

703 Edgewood Street, NE

From a press release:

“Mess Hall – a one-of-a-kind culinary incubator concept opening in Washington DC’s Brookland neighborhood, has announced the start of ‘Launch Pad’ – a competition inviting aspiring local food and beverage entrepreneurs to submit their business plans for a chance at winning a series of prizes provided by Mess Hall and number of additional notable industry brands/sponsors. The contest kicks-off online today and will conclude on September 27th at Mess Hall during a live interactive event at the newly launched venue where four finalists will take the stage before a crowd of dozens of industry insiders, food entrepreneurs, and a panel of high-profile local judges.

One winner will be selected from the four featured finalists and announced live on-stage by the panel of notable local judges, including Alisia Kleinmann of industree, Johann Moonesinghe of EquityEats, and Brandon Skall of DC Brau, to name a few. Contestants will be judged on the thoroughness of the application, professional experience, culinary skills, business acumen, and their potential to run a successful culinary business.

The Grand Prize includes a six-month Mess Hall membership and a substantial investment from the EquityEats CEO, including a $500,000 investment opportunity through EquityEats – a new DC-based equity crowdfunding platform for food and beverage businesses – to open a brick-and-mortar concept in the near future. In addition, the winner will receive complimentary consulting and mentoring sessions from top area CEO’s including DC Brau, Route 11 Potato Chips, operation:eatery, and EquityEats, to name a few. Additional prizes include a feature in Edible DC, a brand-focused video production, graphic design services, and CPA consultation to help accelerate the winner’s business launch timeline.

“After nearly four years of gearing up to bring Mess Hall to life, I’m thrilled to finally be able to offer members of our outstanding culinary community affordable kitchen facilities designed for independent businesses, but that is only half of the story,” said Al Goldberg, Founder of Mess Hall. “We see ourselves creating opportunities for food entrepreneurs on every level, including production, lucrative sales channels, partnership opportunities, mentoring, education, relationships with dedicated vendors, job creation, and of course capital. We are creating a food community surrounded by extraordinary partners and through our ‘Launch Pad’ Competition we’ll be able to place an exclamation at the end of that sentence. The contest illustrates our ideals; we hand-pick promising concepts, provide a collaborative environment, and offer extraordinary resources to help accelerate those businesses within the DC marketplace and potentially beyond.”