Erasto “Red” Jackson stands in Lil Red’s Takeout & Catering. (Photo: Jordan Somers)
By Nyla Moxley
Lil Red’s Takeout & Catering is almost a decade old. The Jamaican BBQ and soul food joint is loved locally and has been recognized nationally. But accolades are not what moves owner Erasto “Red” Jackson–he got into this business for two reasons: to create and feed people.
However, mounting financial pressures are making that harder to sustain. Many of Seattle’s small businesses are facing more financial stress than during the peak of COVID-19, according to a late 2025 survey of 136 independent, brick-and-mortar small businesses across Seattle by Intentionalist.
Lower foot traffic was reported by 71% of businesses and declining sales reported by 63%. In addition to these figures, businesses reported overall cost increases across labor, rent and lease, and utilities.
“Everything over the last nine years has been on the up and up until just recently,” Jackson said. “But I still love what I do.”
Owning and operating a small business was not always something Jackson imagined for himself. His grandmother brought him into the kitchen at just 10-years-old to teach him how to cook so he wouldn’t “have to rely on a woman to care of him” later in life.
“Little did she know that once I started cooking with her, I really enjoyed it,” Jackson said. “It’s something I’ve done ever since.”
Jackson was born and raised in Seattle’s Central District, and as an alumni of O’Dea High School, he still proudly reps his “Fighting Irish” cap. Before Red’s was even conceived, Jackson coached football at O’Dea for over a decade. He believes O’Dea saved his life, and now, he cooks for them.
A stalwart of the community, Jackson has also provided plates to unhoused people and catered for the University of Washington’s Huskies and the Seattle Seahawks. In many ways, Jackson is the soul (and body) of Lil Red’s – the “Red” literally comes from him.
“My skin color, it's a reddish color,” Jackson said. “I'm not really brown, in the summertime, if I'm out in the sun a lot, I get the color of brick. I always make the joke — you put me up against the brick wall and I close my eyes, you can't see me.”
Lil Red’s Takeout & Catering sits on Seattle’s Rainier Avenue South. (Photo: Jordan Somers)
Cooking relaxes Jackson. Food is a form of art to him and he’s a passionate artist.
“Whether it be a painter or a musician, the beauty of it is to be able to create,” Jackson said. “I tell people all the time, there's two things in this world that are universal and everybody loves: music and food. And I'm blessed to be able to do one of them.”
When his friend’s business left a vacated building in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood nine years ago, he gave the opportunity a shot. Jackson explained part of the impetus for opening Red’s was to become one of the “little holes in the wall” that you encounter while traveling.
“That was the whole concept for me,” Jackson said. “Opening this restaurant was to be that… Rainier Valley, Rainier Avenue, and everything has a stigma, but to me, it's just home.”
Even with sustained and loyal community support since opening, Seattle is a difficult city for a small business to survive in, he said. Among these challenges, Jackson pointed to the trickle-down effect of political decisions around big businesses.
“The only thing is, these big businesses can do exactly what they're doing: they can leave,” Jackson said. “And when they do leave, they lay people off. There's thousands of people out here that have lost their job because of what they're trying to implement into law to tax these big businesses, and with that, those are customers that a small business used to have.”
As a small business, Red’s does not have the financial stability or power to move, so they have to “endure what they're putting into law.”
Minimum wage increases are particularly tough on small businesses, Red said. Seattle’s minimum wage, $21.30 an hour as of January 2026, is one of the highest municipal minimum wages in the U.S. and has steadily risen due to inflation over the last decade.
While increases are intended to keep pace with the cost of living, they impact labor expenses of small businesses, which face difficult opportunity costs regarding staffing, hours, and affordability when pressures mount around raising prices.
“Not only are we paying more in taxes, we're paying high food costs, we're losing customers because people are losing work, and they're making business decisions for their family whether they're going to spend $100 to go out to dinner or if they're going to take that $100 and go to the grocery store,” Jackson said.
A customer orders at Lil Red’s Takeout & Catering. (Photo: Jordan Somers)
Businesses surveyed by Intentionalist contended that rent relief or stabilization, city fee or tax relief, and corporate and institutional spending with small businesses are all potential ways to mitigate the onslaught of financial crises. Come January 2027, Seattle’s minimum wage will increase again to $22.14.
Jackson recalled receiving a notice when minimum wage increased last January, saying that employees must receive tips on top of the $21 base.
“I understand it, but for corporations, it's one thing,” Jackson said. “For a small business, it's a killer.”
Post-COVID, rent only continues to hike, Jackson said. Although he has “extremely reasonable” rent currently, Jackson cannot move his businesses for fear that it could double or triple.
The pandemic also meant that Jackson had to shift his business model to takeout and catering to stay afloat. However, that means he cannot in good faith implement a service charge like other establishments.
He raised prices in January 2026, but explained that with rising costs across the board, he would risk pricing himself out of the market.
“I'm probably going to have to go up on my price again, but I'm scared to,” Jackson said. "I got in this business to feed people.”
Jackson explained that it's not just Red’s that is struggling: “we’re all feeling the same.” In his conversations with fellow small business owners, they too report lower foot traffic and dwindling sitdown diners.
“Small businesses have been running this country for years, so when did that change all of a sudden that the corporations are running the businesses?” Jackson said.
He acknowledged that corporations provide a plethora of opportunities, but stressed that “the backbone” of this country is “small mom and pop stores.”
Jackson said he wants to see small businesses be an actualized part of Seattle’s priorities. He explained some small business owners have spoken up at Seattle’s Town Hall, but those efforts have fallen on deaf ears.
"It's sad to think that everything that you've done up to this point and what you've built and grown your business to be, if it goes under, it's not of your doing,” Jackson said.
Lowering food costs, increased grant opportunities for small businesses, and tax relief or utility fee relief are all things that Jackson identified as potential solutions. He echoed the sentiments of 80% of businesses surveyed by Intentionalist who reported a wholesale lack of support post-COVID.
While Jackson has received a tenant improvement grant that will help him obtain more equipment, “that’s not necessarily enough.”
“As far as construction or growing the business or different things like that, there’s nothing out there anymore,” Jackson said.
An employee at Lil Red’s Takeout & Catering prepares a pulled pork sandwich. (Photo: Jordan Somers)
Lil Red’s has big plans for its future. Jackson is moving toward an emphasis on production, including making and smoking a variety of meats, but expanded production requires more space and resources. He intends to build a production plant and a secondary catering kitchen adjacent to the current one.
While those plans are on hold due to a lack of funds, Jackson's aspirations are not. He explained that the production plant could help him reach his end goal: be USDA certified and get his product into stores like the PCC and Whole Foods.
“Everything we do is all natural,” Jackson said. “There's no additives, no preservatives, and I'd love to be able to take some samples to the big wigs over at those companies and see if we can get some shelf space. Not to mention to be able to sell it to the public here.”
Jackson wants to keep creating and feeding the community he comes from, however, it “takes money to make money.” He expressed the need for the city to show that they care.
“When I opened this, it was of the mindset that even though you know we're being pushed out of the community, a lot of us are still here, and we still need somewhere to eat,” Jackson said.
Lil Red’s is located at 4225 Rainier Ave S and open to the public Thursday to Sunday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Their full menu and catering options can be found here.
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