Bria Braithwaite engages 100K+ audience, supports restaurant industry

By Jessica Meditz

jmeditz@queensledger.com

With her iPhone, ring light and zest for life, Brooklyn-based influencer, Bria Braithwaite, strives to engage her audience and support the local restaurant industry.

Braithwaite, 29, who’s a resident of Bed-Stuy, runs @goodeatsonlynyc on Instagram and @briotchhh on TikTok, where she has 102k and 31.8k followers, respectively.

Originally from Wisconsin, Braithwaite relocated to Jamaica, Queens to attend St. John’s University, where she studied communication with a focus on marketing and business.

Braithwaite works in finance full-time, but says that her lifelong passion for food made her decision to become an influencer fairly easy.

“I’m not just a foodie, I do work full time, too…so being able to take my hobby and kind of put it on such a pedestal has been super exciting,” she said. “I basically eat my way through New York and offer recommendations to anybody in the tri-state area or looking to visit and have some good food.”

One of the things she loves the most about being a foodie is the fact that she’s always on her toes, ready to try a new cuisine or restaurant and share that sentiment with her audience.

Braithwaite visits a variety of community staples throughout Brooklyn and Queens, as well as the Bronx, Manhattan and New Jersey, to name a few, to highlight small businesses and hidden gems.

“I would definitely say that I like to seek out new experiences in flavor. My end goal is to always find new, innovative or emerging restaurants that I feel would pair well with my audience. I’m always trying to think outside the box or go to places that I would 100 percent recommend…places that I would go to on the daily,” she said.

Braithwaite also understands that many people are picky eaters, and she strives to make her content accessible and enjoyable for everyone. She also adores the fact that this career allows her to be adventurous.

“I do try to find some simple eats in conjunction with some things that maybe people don’t eat on a regular basis…so kind of bridging the gap between people who are looking to explore, but may not be as adventurous, so they can kind of dip their feet in a little bit,” she said.

Braithwaite definitely feels the support of her large audience, as she grew quickly since she started her Instagram account in February of this year.

“I remember when I first posted, I just thought it might be a little bit challenging to kind of conquer Instagram, understand the algorithm and how things work,” she recalled. “But everything kind of worked in my favor, and it just took off.”

In fact, she actually started her influencing journey on TikTok, which began with casual posting and something just for fun. However, one of her first TikTok videos went viral, inspiring her to keep going.

Braithwaite strongly feels that local restaurants are the heart and soul of our communities, and said that she takes pride in being able to give many restaurant owners and small businesses exposure through her content.

“Throughout the journey, I’ve met so many other foodies, and so many different restaurant owners and businesses within that realm. My focus in finding a lot of hidden gems that are small businesses now is more of paying it forward, because I’m so appreciative of their support,” she said. “Because those are the restaurants that I would frequent in my neighborhood or that I always wanted to try, and then I got the opportunity to put them on a platform, giving them more visibility and exposure, is just really nice,” she continued.