RICHMOND, Va. -- The NCAA Sweet 16 has been whittled down to the Final Four. That means there are just four Richmond-area restaurants vying for the We're Open tournaments title.
CBS 6 randomly paired 16 Richmond-area restaurants with the teams playing in the Sweet 16. As each team won on the basketball court, the restaurant advanced. We’re now down to four. All four restaurants will win prizes with the biggest prize going to the winner of Monday’s championship game.
Ruby Scoops in North Richmond is among the remaining restaurants.
Rabia Kamara opened her ice cream shop at 120 W. Brookland Park Boulevard in late 2020.
"In the middle of winter, in the middle of a pandemic, which obviously was not ideal, but it was really important to us to get here and put down roots and be a part of the neighborhood," the VCU graduate said about the opening of Ruby Scoops. "We're looking forward to our first real like spring and summer season. But everyone's excited, and we're excited. And we get to do cool things like this whole matchup."
Ruby Scoops was randomly paired with UCLA, an 11-seed in the NCAA Tournament and the most unlikely team in the Final Four.
"Everyone was kind of like UCLA is not very good and I was like, we're just excited to be a part of it," Kamara said. "Now I feel invested in sports for the first time in a long time."
By making the Final Four, Ruby Scoops wins at least $500 and sponsor Maebird Marketing has agreed to produce a commercial for all the Final Four restaurants.
Kamara said she'll use the winnings to invest in her business and buy a freezer to store pints of ice cream. She also plans to spread the love among her loyal customers.
"Possibly be able to do a couple of happy hours of free ice cream," she said. "We hope that everyone feels as warm and fuzzy being here eating ice cream as we want this environment to make them feel."
You can support Ruby Scoops here and by rooting for UCLA in the Final Four.
Whichever team wins the tournament, the corresponding restaurant wins $1,500.
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