For 38 years, Chef Marilyn has been feeding Los Angeles. Not just cooking — feeding. Feeding her community on Crenshaw.
Feeding people who needed a second chance when no one else would hire them. Feeding families, churches, organizations, and neighbors who knew they could always count on her.
For decades, she has poured into this community. Now, she needs her community to pour back into her.
Earlier this year, at her own fundraiser, Chef Marilyn accepted help to stabilize her restaurant.
She trusted that help. Based on those understandings, significant decisions were made — including transitioning her business structure and moving forward in reliance on that support.
That is not how things have unfolded. What was intended to be a collaborative business arrangement has not functioned that way in practice.
Despite an agreement that included sharing in profits and the use of her name and brand, Chef Marilyn has been treated as if she were simply an employee — without meaningful control over the very business she built.
As a result, she has been unable to operate on her own terms. She is 71 years old. She has given nearly four decades of her life, her labor, and her love to this city. And she is still fighting to reclaim what is hers. Efforts have been made to resolve this.
They have not yet resulted in a resolution. Right now, she needs us.
The reality many restaurants faced Chef Marilyn’s situation did not happen in a vacuum. More than 100 restaurants permanently closed in Los Angeles in 2025 alone, driven by a compounding crisis of rising labor costs, inflation, declining tourism, and environmental impacts like wildfires.
Like many small and community-based restaurants, she also faced significant financial and regulatory pressures during and after COVID — including a state audit that contributed to her current tax burden.
—Where the funds will go
To restore Chef Marilyn’s independence and secure her future, funds will be used for:
• Legal and professional costs — Ensuring Chef Marilyn has full, protected ownership of her name, brand, and future operations
• Stabilization and reopening support — Providing the financial runway needed to continue operating or rebuild on her own terms The largest and most urgent barrier is the state tax obligation.
Clearing it is essential for her to move forward.
This is bigger than one person This is about legacy. This is about dignity. This is about making sure our elders are not pushed aside from what they built.
In our community, we don’t let our elders fall. We don’t let someone give 38 years of service and walk away with nothing. We show up. We stand in the gap. We make a way—together.
Every dollar matters. Every share matters. Every prayer matters. For 38 years, she showed up for Los Angeles. Now Los Angeles has the chance to show up for her.
Her name is hers. Her legacy is hers. Her kitchen should be hers. Help Chef Marilyn take it back. — Chef Marilyn, Queen of Down Home Southern Goodies
Organizer
