Tennis fans at the U.S. Open have been lining up to get served healthy options like smoothies, acai bowls, and salads.

That's good news for Dawn Kelly and Jade Duncan, the mother-daughter duo behind the Nourish Spot. Their southeast Jamaica-based business is back for a third year at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, a place they enjoyed as a family before they profited from it.


What You Need To Know

  • Dawn Kelly and Jade Duncan are the mother-daughter duo behind the Nourish Spot, a Jamaica-based business that's a concession stand for the third year in a row at the U.S. Open

  • They are just two of the more than 3,500 seasonal workers from the community hired by the United States Tennis Association this year
  • Kelly said their U.S. Open jobs have strengthened their small business

  • The future of this area is bright, with development of the city’s first-ever soccer stadium underway.  There's also a controversial proposal by Mets owner and billionaire Steven Cohen to bring a casino to the area around Citifield, which does have opposition

“As a single mom, I used to bring my children here for kids’ day every year, so for us to have a full circle moment, and turn around and be a concession here at the U.S. Open, I can’t tell you how wonderful that is,” said Kelly.

Duncan agreed that it’s a full circle moment. She opened up about the best part of being here.

“I’m a lover of tennis, so I love when I get to sneak away for a little bit on break, and go catch a match or something,” said Duncan.

Harlem-born, Queens-raised, Kelly opened the Nourish Spot about seven years ago after she found out she was pre-diabetic. The mission: fresh ingredients and a belief that food is medicine. Their seasonal jobs here at the U.S. Open strengthen their small business.

“It’s challenging to make ends meet every single day. It’s challenging to pay all the different salaries, and the taxes, and the bills that you have to pay,” Kelly said. “The opportunity to make money is huge.”

They are just two of the more than 3,500 seasonal workers from the community hired by the United States Tennis Association. The head of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, Tom Grech, said this annual event brings in big money to Queens and the city at-large.

“The local buys, the local purchases, hotels, and so on. Some of the hotels in Queens are not the direct beneficiary because there’s a capacity issue, but they do stay in Manhattan and other places, but it’s in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Grech.

And the future of this area is bright, with development of the city’s first-ever soccer stadium underway.

There's also a controversial proposal by Mets owner and billionaire Steven Cohen to bring a casino to the area around Citifield. That does have opposition. But Grech said he hopes the state moves forward here, granting one of up to three casino licenses downstate. Roughly a dozen proposals are expected.

“That’s gonna become a national mecca for sports,” he said.

This year, the USTA said it’s hoping to hit one-million visitors over the three-week period.

“So many different people from all walks of life, from all countries around the world, are tasting the Nourish Spot’s fare, I mean how extra is that!” Kelly said.

Extra restaurants are what she wants. The Nourish Spot opened a second location in Bedford Stuyvesant earlier this year. And while they have a small presence at JFK Airport, Kelly wants to increase the Nourish Spot's footprint there too.

"We're looking to pop up in airports near you, and serve healthy fare, because we know travelers need premium healthy options as they travel the globe,” said Kelly.