Tupac Shakur’s Family Just Opened the Restaurant He Envisioned and It’s Filled with Soul Food Favorites

Beginning June 16 — which would have been rapper and actor Tupac Shakur’s 51st birthday — fans and food connoisseurs in Los Angeles will get to experience the restaurant concept the late hip-hop legend never got to bring to life. The latest temporary iteration of Powamekka Café — a eatery that Tupac described as “a place to play and parlay” — will begin a two-week run at the massive entertainment complex L.A. Live, serving lunch and dinner seven days a week.

Tupac’s idea for the restaurant was discovered by his family in one of his journals after his untimely death in 1996. The first Powamekka Café pop-up opened in Fresno, California in 2016 to commemorate the 20-year anniversary of the rapper’s death. A year later, the Shakur family brought the concept to New York City.

The L.A. pop-up is a partnership with Sacramento-based Fixins Soul Kitchen, which normally occupies the space at L.A. Live. The full lunch and dinner menu comprises of staple comfort foods like gumbo, fried chicken, and meatloaf. Powamekka Café is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, extending its closing time to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The restaurant will also open one hour earlier on Saturday and Sunday to accommodate brunchers.

Powamekka Café becomes the second tribute to Tupac’s life to open at L.A. Live this year. In January, an immersive exhibit titled Wake Me When I’m Free opened at the same location, offering fans an unprecedented look at Tupac’s life, activism, and music using technology, contemporary art, and never before seen artifacts from his personal collection. Pieces from the exhibit — which has been extended through this summer — have been incorporated into the new Powamekka Café experience.

The Powamekka Café pop-up is located at 800 W. Olympic Boulevard (L.A. Live) with the last day to visit being June 30.