25 Feb Youth-Led Grace N’ Grub Blends Faith, Family and Food in Antioch

The Grace N’ Grub team is made up of brothers Diego, 18, Alfredo, 20, and German, 15, Chavez Marquez and a few of their closest friends. (Courtesy of Grace N’ Grub)

By Jasmine Ford

Grace N’ Grub is the newest food pop-up in Antioch, drawing long lines with its smash burgers, wings and loaded fries.

The pop-up is set up at 2515 Somersville Road on Wednesdays and Fridays in the parking lot shared by the former 99 Cents Only store and Savers. Its mission, according to the team, is to feed the people, and give thanks to God for the opportunity.

Grace N’ Grub was founded by Diego Chavez Marquez, who recently turned 18. Though the pop-up has only been operating for about five months, he said balancing school and running a food business can be challenging.

“Getting out of school, I have to prepare everything for the same day,” he said.

He runs it alongside his two brothers, Alfredo and German, with help from a group of friends.

“It’s Diego, and then I’m the older brother, and then my other brother is 15,” said Alfredo, 20. “And then, of course, we have like five more of our close friends with us.”

Despite the demands, the turnout has been steady. Diego encourages customers to arrive early, warning that long lines are part of the experience.

“Having people come and support you know, from starting the business five months ago, it’s crazy how many people come and show love and support,” he said.

The name Grace N’ Grub reflects the group’s Christian faith.

“We believe in Christ. We’re Christian. We surrender our life to God,” Alfredo said. “With the grace that God has given us, we wanted to implement that into what we’re doing. That’s how the name came up, and ever since, we just ran with it.”

Fittingly, the pop-up’s location is also the site of services for their church.

“Our pastor owns the property, and that’s why we’re able to sell there,” he said. “Our home church is Legendary Church, also known as Legendary Movement Church..”

The team said the business took off after videos started circulating online.

“We didn’t expect this at all,” Alfredo said. “The first two months were pretty rough. We went from like 100 followers to 300, but we didn’t have consistent people until the video got out. Social media is a big thing for us.”

The business now has an estimated 11,000 followers on Instagram and nearly 3,500 on TikTok, both under the handle @gracengrub_.

Recently, however, places like Grace N’ Grub came under scrutiny after the manager of a local business reportedly raised concerns about food vendors at a City Council meeting. Police later showed up at the group’s usual location outside their church but ultimately did not issue any citations. Grace N’ Grub responded by informing followers that they would continue operating at a different location.

“We had a situation today. We didn’t know what was going to happen or even if we would set up today,” said Diego. “We let our customers know where we’re going to be, and, all glory to God, they came to support us.”

They returned to the Somersville Road location Friday, where Diego said city leaders showed their support.

“We had the mayor and some City Council [members] there to support us,” said Alfredo “We’re working on getting our permits, but we’re able to sell there. The city has been helpful.”

The menu includes a smash burger combo with fries, smash fries, chicken wings with various sauces, onion rings and mozzarella sticks. Prices range from $5-$20.

“What’s going viral right now is the smash fries,” said Diego. “People think it looks really good.”

The $20 dish features steak fries topped with chopped hamburger and bacon, caramelized onions and shredded cheese and ranch and buffalo ranch dipping sauces on the side.

Looking forward, Diego says he hopes to grow Grace N’ Grub by partnering with other businesses to bring food and grace to the community. The group has been organizing what it calls the Daily Bread Market, which it plans to officially open in March. Pop-up events will feature 25-30 other East Bay food vendors and look to create a lively, block-party-like atmosphere.

Their mindset has always been about putting in the work and staying focused once they decide to pursue something.

“If it’s in God’s will, I would like a food truck or a trailer,” said Diego. “The [goal] is to do like a ‘foodieland’ just to bring the community together and to make Antioch a better place.”