Bellingham transplants Briana and Julius Stoker run one of our area’s newest restaurants, the “fresh eats” eatery, Brotha Dudes. Brotha Dudes’ mission statement is to create fast, affordable and healthy food, three things much needed in the college town.
The Stoker family relocated to Bellingham from Redding, California then opened the restaurant on East Holly Street, in the space the Black Pearl formerly inhabited. The origin of Brotha Dudes’ namesake is every bit as unique as the food they serve up.
Duncan Stoker, son of Briana and Julius, decided to hike the Pacific Crest Trail. His trail name was Brotha Dude. During his time on the trail, his parents supplied him with homemade high calorie and protein snack bars. Fellow hikers told Duncan his parents should sell the protein bars and market them as Brotha Dudes. Although that wasn’t the route the Stokers took, the name Brotha Dudes stuck and became Bellingham’s newest, delicious but health-conscious eatery.
The menu at Brotha Dudes features both vegetarian and carnivore options. Freedom of choice in restaurants is an ever-evolving trend in the food industry these days and offering a plethora of options for all kinds of eaters is extremely beneficial, especially in a town like Bellingham.
There are two go-to types of meals served up at Brotha Dudes, wraps and bowls (wraps at the restaurant are called blunts). A staple carnivore menu item at the restaurant is the “Dude’s Chicken Blunt.” Chicken, rice, beans, cilantro, fresh jalapeños and Dude’s slaw make up this savory wrap.
If you order a bowl at Brotha Dudes, you will find yourself ditching the tortilla and enjoying a tasty hodge-podge of ingredients that mingle together inside a bowl. One of Brotha Dude’s various bowl-type entrees, the “Hippie Bowl” contains spinach, kale, quinoa, sweet potatoes, pumpkin seeds, tofu, avocado and goji berries. There are many adjectives to describe this dish, but earthy, hearty and healthy come to mind.
Manager Theo Radke said people are excited about the food Brotha Dudes prepares and that they enjoy the menu item names that usually feature a play on words as well, like the newest addition to the menu “The Queso-Dude-A.”
“I was super excited I got to name The Queso-Dude-A’ and people are really loving it,” Radke said.
The staff at Brotha Dudes is a tight-knit community. This can be shown by the story of how Radke joined the team. He lived above the restaurant and met the Stokers and rest of the crew during their renovations of the space. After getting to know them, they decided he would be a good fit to start working at their newly opened restaurant.
“It’s cool. Both of Julius and Briana’s daughters work here, their son is the Brotha Dude and everyone else who works here is really close,” Radke said.
In addition to being family-owned and serving up tasty eats, Brotha Dudes is also trying out some new ways to attract business involving technology, Radke said.
Radke explained Brotha Dudes has started using a new technology via the Facebook Messenger app called the Brotha Bot. While on your Facebook messenger app, if you use your mobile phone to scan a barcode posted on the walls in the restaurant you are immediately directed to the Brotha Bot. The Brotha Bot is an automated answering service that can direct you through the ordering process, assist you with menu options, help you get special discounts and provide you with an email address or phone number if you wish to contact a human directly.
“It’s awesome,” Radke said. “It’s the future and I don’t think anyone in Bellingham is doing it yet. This way you can have everything in one place. You can make an order, or just figure out what kind of food we make.”
A laid-back environment, innovative ordering technology and fresh eats – Brotha Dudes is ahead of the curve in a really good way.
Brotha Dudes
202 East Holly Street Suite 117
Bellingham, WA 98225
360-933-1927
