Blossom African Foods opened in March 2025 and can be found on the southside of Princess at the corner of Princess and Victoria. Shoppers can expect to find delights representing a wide range of countries in the African diaspora. I recently visited to learn more from the founder and owner, Tomilola Aladejare.  

Tomilola studied law at McGill and often wondered about Kingston as she passed it on the 401 but didn’t find herself here until 2019 when she started her job at Queen’s. She’s loved it ever since.  

Like many that come to Kingston, she was often searching for specific cultural ingredients and had to travel to get them. And then Covid hit. “When Covid started I thought ‘why can’t I get anything that I want.’ I still managed until I was pregnant in 2021 and I couldn’t travel to find my cravings. After I had my baby and I was on mat leave I decided I would try and start getting hard-to-find items for people that they were interested in,” explains Aladejare.

The demand for items from Africa grew and grew, “Before I was serving people that I knew - Friends of friends of friends but when the market grew so much we decided to make it a proper business. We got the space in July of last year and then we had to renovate - it was completely bare. And then we had to get permits and licenses. We finally opened on March 1, 2025,” shares Tomilola.

Now that they are settled in, folks can find snacks, ingredients and popular proteins that represent the diverse tastes of the African diaspora. Popular snacks include plantain chips and kuli kuli. For jollof rice fans, they have several spice kits that make it easy to replicate the Nigerian/Ghanaian/Senegalese rice dish from the comfort of your home kitchen. They also carry Fufu, a popular West African staple and Zobo, a delicious and refreshing hibiscus drink.  

Tomilola is happy to be accessible to the downtown crowd looking to satisfy their cultural cravings and for the opportunity to introduce African cuisine to new audiences.  

Tomilola explains, “I’ve met so many people now that I didn't know were in Kingston. Getting to know people that aren’t from the Black community and introducing African foods to them has also been really nice. I feel like there is a responsibility on us. A duty to present the best of Africa. Not just the product but the service as well. That’s the aim, that they come in and have a good experience.”

And when it comes to this weekend’s Promenade, she says, “I’m excited because it’s an opportunity to put Africa forward.”