Kee's Loaded Kitchen (stylized as Kee's #Loaded Kitchen) is a

soul food Soul food is the ethnic cuisine of African Americans. Originating in the Southern United States, American South from the cuisines of Slavery in the United States, enslaved Africans transported from Africa through the Atlantic slave trade, sou ...

restaurant in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

Description

Kee's is a Black-owned,

restaurant on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in

northeast Portland Northeast Portland is one of the six major divisions of Portland, Oregon. Northeast Portland contains a diverse collection of neighborhoods. For example, while Irvington and the Alameda Ridge feature some of the oldest and most expensive homes i ...

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

neighborhood. The menu includes smoked

brisket Brisket is a cut of meat from the breast or lower chest of beef or veal. The beef brisket is one of the nine beef primal cuts, though the definition of the cut differs internationally. The brisket muscles include the Pectoralis major, superficial ...

, fried catfish, chicken wings, loaded

baked potato A baked potato, known in the United Kingdom as a jacket potato, is a preparation of potato. After baking, it may be served with fillings, toppings or condiments, such as butter, cheese, sour cream, gravy, baked beans and tuna. Some varieties of ...

es,

macaroni and cheese Macaroni and cheese (colloquially known as mac and cheese and known as macaroni cheese in the United Kingdom) is a pasta dish of macaroni covered in cheese sauce, most commonly cheddar sauce. Its origins trace back to cheese and pasta casserol ...

spaghetti Spaghetti () is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta.spaghetti
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Una ...

, and desserts.

History

Kiauna "Kee" Nelson is the restaurant's owner and chef. In 2020, Kee's and Nelson appeared in a

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Aminé Adam Aminé Daniel (born April 18, 1994) is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He first gained notability for his commercial debut single, " Caroline", which peaked at number 11 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. Aminé released ...

. In June, during the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as Reactions to the mu ...

, donations from community members and

Don't Shoot Portland Don't Shoot Portland, also called Don't Shoot PDX, is a Portland, Oregon-based accountability group formed by Black Lives Matter supporter Teressa Raiford to scrutinize actions of the Portland Police Bureau. History Don't Shoot Portland held a ...

allowed Kee's to provide free food to Black Portlanders. For Thanksgiving, Kee's offered turkey, smoked brisket, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, cornbread stuffing, collard greens, and sweet potato casserole. Desserts included banana pudding, coconut layer cake, and sweet potato pie. The restaurant was featured on the

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series ''

Street Food Street food is food sold by a Hawker (trade), hawker or vendor on a street or at another public place, such as a market, fair, or park. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption ...

'' in 2022. Kee's caters large events.

Reception

In 2018, Kee's was named Cart of the Year by ''

Willamette Week ''Willamette Week'' (''WW'') is an alternative weekly newspaper and a website published in Portland, Oregon, United States, since 1974. It features reports on local news, politics, sports, business, and culture. History Early history '' ...

''. Kee's was included in multiple ''

Eater Portland ''Eater'' is a food website by Vox Media. It was co-founded by Lockhart Steele and Ben Leventhal in 2005, and originally focused on dining and nightlife in New York City. Eater launched a national site in 2009, and covered nearly 20 cities by 2 ...

'' lists in 2021. Nick Woo and Nick Townsend included the restaurant in "14 Real-Deal Fried Chicken Spots in Portland", writing: "When Kiauna Nelson of the MLK food cart Kee's Loaded Kitchen starts frying chicken for her loaded plates, it's a run-don't-walk situation. Nelson's chicken gets a heavy, spice-laden rub before it hits the fryer, and then gets hit with the 'magic dust,' a sweet-spicy powder almost reminiscent of barbecue potato chips. There's nothing in town like it. Now, Kee's can get some serious lines, so the real move is to get to the cart before it opens for a takeout order." Additionally, Woo and

Brooke Jackson-Glidden Brooke Jackson-Glidden is a food writer and the editor of '' Eater Portland''. In 2023, she received the Jonathan Gold Local Voice Award from the James Beard Foundation in part for her essay about Either/Or. Jackson-Glidden has been the editor o ...

also included Kee's in "15 Outstanding Portland Food Carts", and Ron Scott included the food cart in "9 Spots for Serious Soul Food in Portland and Beyond". The website's Ron Scott and Nathan Williams included the restaurant in a 2022 list of "13 Spots for Serious Soul Food in Portland and Beyond". Kee's was included in ''Eater Portland'' 2025 overview of the city's best food carts.

References

{{Restaurants in Portland, Oregon Black-owned restaurants in Oregon Food carts in Portland, Oregon Restaurants in King, Portland, Oregon Soul food restaurants in Portland, Oregon Year of establishment missing

Description

History

Reception

See also

References