Restaurants Could Be A Place To Be Politically Inspired

In DC, restaurants mirror the city's political activism. Social justice and political awareness have become a part of the restaurant industry with concepts that incorporate issues through everything from the name to the food itself. Educational restaurant decor and creative menu settings have popped up in eateries across the District.

Restaurants such as Busboys and Poets, PomPom, and Immigrant Food are all embodying this shift in the industry, say diners and restaurant owners alike. Busboys and Poets opened 14 years ago and has grown to seven locations in the D.C area. Inspired by Langston Hughes, the popular D.C. restaurant chain has an expansive menu.Owner and creator Andy Shallal has described Busboys and Poets as an "intertwining of activism within our business model."

The tagline, "Inspiring Social Change," echoes this, and each additional location has adopted the phrase, thus becoming the core tagline of Shallal's brand. Using his restaurants as a meeting space, Shallal educates the public and empowers liberal causes within his business model. Shallal said that there is "nothing better than the food business to reach the largest number of people because everybody eats."

Shallal also said that "at Busboys and Poets, racial and cultural differences are consciously uplifted." According to their website, the menu demonstrates this with cuisine from all over the world, as well as the decor choices that incorporate empowering messages.

"For one thing, we're not just a restaurant," said Shallal, who comes from a political background from his campaign work in the eighties. "We're a lot of different things," he said, "we are a book store, a gathering place, and a community center." Books are a centerpiece of the concept, seeing as the entryway mirrors an extensive private library. Graphic murals also fill the space and quotes of world peace leaders line the walls atop the seating booths.

Restaurants seem to be a spot to have meaningful civic conversations, and Busboys and Poets reinforce this. "Once they get there, lots of stuff can happen," said Shallal. "Exchange of ideas and thoughts and all kinds of things can take shape and, you know, we present them with a huge menu, not just of food, but of food for thought."

Just as Shallal used his restaurants to foster conversation on critical social issues, Carlie Steiner followed a similar tune with her new concept, PomPom. It's a small but mighty restaurant at 828 Upshur St. N.W, known for small fusion dishes and craft cocktails.

The first thing you notice when you walk in the restaurant is the bright colored pompoms hanging above the bar. They're a name and a decoration, which Steiner picked to "evoke joy," a mantra she hopes will be clear to diners and the staff behind her venture. Previously named Himitsu before Steiner came on the scene, the restaurant group thatcreated PomPom has a history of backing organizations that support women's rights. They previously donated 100% of profits one night to a reproductive rights organization and have partnered with many other charitable organizations.

"Owning a restaurant or being an executive chef of a restaurant is about a lot more than food today," Steiner says.Steiner said that the 24-seat restaurant's undercurrent of feminism is shown in featuring wines from female winemakers and cocktails made from spirits from female distillers. The whimsical decor echoes fun energy that brings in empowerment in the form of curated cocktails. The female icons that inspired the cocktail menu, prove menu items can portray empowerment as a regular addition; through the creative drinks PomPom offers.

PomPom has cocktails nicknamed after Serena Williams, singer and trans activist Shea Diamond, author Nicole Chung, and clean-water advocate Autumn Peltier. A green chartreuse-based drink dubbed "The Chartrueth" nods to Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, while Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gets her sherry, thyme, and coconut concoction called "This Is My Thyme." Steiner also pays tribute to José Andrés's wife Patricia with the toasted sesame and pineapple "peanut butter & jelly" drink.

The cuisine at PomPom leans on the Mediterranean, Southeast Asian, and Latin American flavor profiles, and embodies a cultural mixing pot. As a woman-led restaurant full of fresh ingredients, big flavors, and genuine hospitality, the restaurant feeds you female empowerment along with the food. "My support for women, LGBTQ women, trans women, has always shown in beverage menus, but now we're able to showcase that throughout the entire restaurant," Steiner said.

Busboys and Poets, along with PomPom, infuse political activism and empowerment in some ways. Immigrant Food takes a different approach as an entire restaurant dedicated to educating diners on the issue of immigration, two blocks away from the White House.

When it opened on November 12th, 2019, everything from the food to the decor, to the economic influence of the profits, centered around immigration. Immigrant Food celebrates the U.S.'s immigrant history, supports organizations dedicated to immigrant services, and advocates for immigration issues.

Peter Schechter, one of the three founders of the restaurant in downtown Washington, says the project is not about Donald Trump, even if it is a response to the policies and narratives of his administration.

"It's one of the few things in Washington that's not about Mr. Trump," says Schechter. "We're in a period in the States where suddenly one of the most basic things about being an American is suddenly in doubt."

Most importantly, they serve bright bowls that fuse ingredients from various immigrant cuisines. The dishes have, in fact, been created by an immigrant, Enrique Limardo, a Venezuela-born chef. The Viet Vibes and Columbia Road bowls highlight the constant fusion of immigrant countries from the menu. The Viet Vibes bowl takes adobo-spiced chicken and pairs it with spicy rice noodles, cilantro, peanuts, mango, and a spicy pho vinaigrette sauce, channeling Vietnam and the Caribbean. The Columbia Road bowl (spice-rubbed steak, misir lentils, pickled loroco, fresh cheese, and more) honors Ethiopians and Salvadorans, two of D.C.'s influential immigrant communities.

The restaurant is also partnered with five nonprofit organizations that tackle of wide-range of immigration issues in the U.S., according to the materials in the restaurant.The new restaurant concept sets a precedent for future creations, says diners. It's a "new restaurant concept that fuses food and advocacy," according to customers like Maria Comanero, 28.

"I am so happy that a restaurant is choosing to send a message with food. Especially with an issue that is super hot in the national conversation. Honestly, I can't wait to come back," said Comanero. She experienced the restaurant with her background of immigration, coming from a family of immigrants from Ecuador.

Alice Ralken, 47, doesn't have a personal experience with immigration. She lives in an apartment complex three blocks from Immigrant Food's location and seemed ecstatic that a socially motivated restaurant opened its doors in her community.

"It's not just food, it's not just social issues; it's not just Asian fusion. It's the beginning of a conversation. I'm happy to support a business creating that, but I do wonder if those that oppose immigration would feel reluctant to enter," said Ralken.