Precious Chambers still remembers her first job in the kitchen: cleaning out Vlasic pickle jars for her mom’s cookie business.
“It takes pretty long to soak a pickle jar for it not to smell like pickles anymore,” Chambers recalled.
While she eventually graduated to cracking eggs and other tasks, those early experiences stuck with her.
Chambers’ mom is Cheryl Johnson, founder and owner of Aunt Cheryl’s Cafe in Braddock. The restaurant is a family affair that has been operating out of the Nyia Page Community Center at 416 Library Street for the last nine years. It’s made a name for itself selling just-like-your-grandma-made-it soul food and a now city-famous sweet potato pie.
But the family’s entrepreneurial journey traces all the way back to 1989 and those pickle-turned-cookie jars.
“I was a little girl, and my sister and I would ride around with my mom in her blue Pontiac Sunbird, delivering cookies to different places in the city,” Chambers said.
Johnson went on to launch several food ventures, from a restaurant on Frankstown Avenue to a successful catering company — all while working full-time as a social worker. Though Chambers was always involved, when it came time to choose her own path, she opted for a different route, building a 10-year career in banking.
But when her mom retired from social work and decided to open another food business — Aunt Cheryl’s Cafe in 2016 — Chambers returned to help out. It felt like coming home.
“It’s always been in me,” she shared. “It’s something that I love to do, so it doesn’t feel like work to me.”
This time around, she brought a fresh perspective.
From family business to legacy building
“I’m focused on longevity,” she said. “I love family businesses, and through my research, I found that it’s usually the second generation that takes it to the next level, so I feel like that’s kind of my job.”
That drive to grow Aunt Cheryl’s led Chambers to finally pursue her dream of higher education.
Working with the Pittsburgh Scholar House’s Wayfinder Program, which supports single parents working toward college degrees, she enrolled in Point Park University’s Hospitality Management program.
“I’m a 42-year-old freshman,” she laughed.
One thing led to another, and through Pittsburgh Scholar House, she learned about Catapult Culinary and applied to the spring cohort.
Now balancing both programs, Chambers says each one has strengthened the other, and together, they’ve created real momentum for the business.
“Once I got involved with Catapult, I started getting good news or seeing something productive happen with the business every month,” she noted.
She was also surprised by how applicable Catapult’s curriculum was to her college coursework, particularly the business management class she just completed.
“I was like, ‘Wow, a lot of this stuff I already know from my studies at Catapult.’ For example, I conducted a SWOT analysis for Catapult that I was able to apply to my course. I finished that class with 100%, and I really want to give credit where credit is due, because Catapult prepared me for that."
Game-changing connections
Beyond the theoretical knowledge, Chambers is energized by how Catapult has helped her expand her network and access real-world opportunities — from securing vending gigs to applying for the NFL Draft Source Program, a procurement and networking initiative connecting Pittsburgh-area businesses with subcontracting opportunities tied to the 2026 NFL Draft.
Aunt Cheryl’s Cafe was one of just 150 businesses selected for the program, out of more than 1,800 applicants.
With so many wins lately, the rest of the family has started looking to her for leadership.
“My brothers are like, ‘We’re following you, coach. Whatever you tell us to do, we’re going to do. What’s the playbook?’”
For now, that playbook includes finishing her studies and making the most of the opportunities in front of them. But Chambers is dreaming big. Her ultimate vision is to franchise Aunt Cheryl’s Cafe and figure out how to ship their signature sweet potato pie nationwide.
While her mom is still happy to work in the business for now, she knows the day will come when she’ll want to retire and relax with the grandkids. Chambers is putting the pieces in place to make that transition possible.
Once she graduates from Catapult Culinary in September 2025, she’ll receive one year of free access to the Catapult Culinary Commercial Kitchen in Bellevue. She hopes to use that time to ramp up pie production to 1,000 pies a day.
For Chambers, it feels like everything is coming full circle.
