Ep. 73: Inside Kokomo w/ Ria and Kevol Graham on Caribbean Food and Hospitality
Ackee and Saltfish Shumai. Photo by Katrine Moite
XO Noddles. Photo by Katrine Moite
Ria and Kevol Graham are New York–based hospitality founders and the partners behind Kokomo, a Caribbean restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Married with three children, they run Kokomo as a family business shaped by Caribbean heritage, New York City life, and a shared commitment to care.
Opening just before the Covid pandemic, Kokomo has grown into a well-regarded destination known for its food, cocktails, and sense of welcome. Ria brings a background in marketing and food culture, while Kevol’s experience spans nightlife, events, and experiential hospitality. Together, they’ve built a space that reflects their values as much as their taste.
Kokomo Menu Assortment. Photo by Katrine Moite
In this episode, they talk about how their understanding of Caribbean culture informs the menu, not as a fixed tradition, but as something expansive, influenced by multiple histories and migrations. They cover food as a cultural language, hospitality as an extension of family, and the realities of building something together in New York City.
The conversation moves through menu development, cocktails, and the role of experimentation, touching on how memory, creativity, and place inform what they serve and how guests are received.
Kokomo Salad. Photo by Katrine Moite.
Ria and Kevol also discuss the Kokomo Foundation and their fundraising efforts in support of Jamaica following Hurricane Melissa, speaking to diaspora, climate impact, and responsibility. Community engagement, they explain, is inseparable from how they understand hospitality and success.
Looking ahead, they share plans to expand Kokomo beyond the restaurant through sauces and new projects, while continuing to represent Caribbean culture with intention and care.
Red Thai Curry Snapper. Photo by Katrine Moite.
This episode offers a thoughtful conversation on partnership, culture, and hospitality as a lived practice.
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Front Page Image: Ria and Kevol Graham Photo courtesy of Kokomo.