Before the doors reopen each morning at Rosetta’s Soul Food, owner Emma Smalls thinks of her mother – the woman who taught her to cook, to hustle and to lead. That legacy carried her through a devastating fire and into a new chapter, where she’s become a community favorite and a model for young Black entrepreneurs.Smalls said she has been in the restaurant business in one form or another since she was 13. Now, at age 39, she is a veteran business owner. She started her journey as an entrepreneur at 27, taking over Rosetta’s Soul Food from her mother, the restaurant’s namesake.“I just picked up the skills, the love for the people and the passion for cooking from her,” Smalls said.As if the restaurant business isn’t hard enough. It quickly became more difficult: in January 2024, a fire gutted the kitchen and parts of the dining room at her previous location.
Emma moved ahead and opened a new site in April 2025 at 484 N. Highway 52. It’s in a different location, but it’s still Rosetta’s Soul Food. So don’t call it a comeback, she’s been here for years because cooking is her passion.“I just love to cook everything,” she said. “If I had to pick a meal, definitely my favorite vegetable is collard greens, and my favorite meal is fried chicken, rice, collard greens, macaroni, yams and corn bread.”
She is well known around Berkeley County not only for her skills in the kitchen but also for her zest for inspiring others and setting an example.“I think in the community, people look up to me for the simple fact that I am a young black business owner. I get young kids all the time who want to enter the culinary arts, and they often have questions. I am always open to being an influence to the younger kids.”
Smalls is wise beyond her years in the competitive restaurant business. With that, she does everything she can to share the wisdom and spread the wealth in her community.“I’m always open to being an influence on the younger kids, especially young black kids wanting to go into the culinary arts. It’s an amazing field to work in, especially when you have a passion for cooking,” she said. “I tend like to hire those passionate kids. I want to show them things that I’ve learned and things I know to help them be successful in the future.”
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