Saving Stories: Prominent food entrepreneur 'Sav' on the journey from 'grill' to 'chill' to gourmet ice cream specialty

By Alan Lytle

Published July 31, 2025 at 6:00 AM EDT

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As 250 Lex continues to celebrate Lexington's culinary traditions this month, we're highlighting this interview with Mamadou Savane. In 2018 the Nunn Center collaborated with Vanessa Grossl to interview immigrant entrepreneurs. The resulting project was called Savor, immigrant entrepreneur oral history project. Grossl conducted 20 interviews, many of which were conducted with food entrepreneurs here in Lexington. One of those individuals was Mamadou Savane. Better known to all of us as Sav. He talks about opening his West African restaurant (Sav's Grill) and starting a side ice cream business (Sav's Chill) that eventually became his primary venture which today we know as Sav's Gourmet Ice Cream.

SAVOR is a series of interviews with Bluegrass area immigrants who have built new lives through their entrepreneurship.

https://kentuckyoralhistory.net/ark:/16417/xt77d7959v4m

Mamadou "Sav" Savané discusses his difficult childhood as the son of his father's fourth wife, growing up in Kindia, Guinea, and meeting his future wife Rachel who was serving in the Peace Corps in Guinea. He also talks about moving to the United States, the birth of his son, opening Sav's West African Grill, and later the ice cream shop Sav's Chill, and his burn accident at the restaurant.

https://kentuckyoralhistory.net/ark:/16417/xt7fn29p5j3w