Who Feeds the District?

Founded in 1894, the DC History Center deepens understanding of our city's past to connect, empower, and inspire. As the only community-based nonprofit focused on the District’s history, our vision is to reach into all eight wards to preserve and elevate the stories of Washington's diverse people, neighborhoods, and institutions.The DC History Center is located in the historic Carnegie Library on Mt. Vernon Square in Washington, DC. It includes three galleries, a library, and a retail store.

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In this Context for Today, panelists discuss immigrant foodways, including food as cultural diplomacy, activism, and economic stability.

Washingtonians are quick to dispute the claim that the District is not a “food city,” defending its merits and highlighting our many food traditions and restaurants. But in the past two years, under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are thinking differently about restaurants: from outright closures to risk of exposure to COVID-19 for predominantly immigrant laborers.
In this Context for Today, a closer look at who works in restaurants and why reveals the critical role immigrants have long played in DC food systems, from the opening of the city's first Ethiopian restaurant in 1978 to community anchors such as El Tamarindo, opened in 1982, that have offered stability through successive waves of neighborhood development. With co-producer Marianne Tshihamba, we gather local restaurateurs who have shaped DC’s food industry to discuss the history of food as cultural diplomacy, activism, and economic stability in the city over the years.
Sileshi Alifom, owner of Das Ethiopian Cuisine; Ana Reyes, owner of El Tamarindo; and Andy Shallal, CEO of Busboys and Poets reflect on their own experiences as immigrants and owners of restaurants in the nation’s capital. They offer insight into the development of DC’s food scene and answer the questions: who makes a living in the food industry and how immigrant foodways shape an international city. 
“Who Feeds the District?” is the latest installment in the DC History Center’s <a href="http://dchistory.org/learn/contextfortoday/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Context for Today</a> series of online conversations with thoughtful and thought-provoking historians, activists, journalists, and community members.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERSSileshi Alifom is the innovative owner and operator of DAS Ethiopian Cuisine in Georgetown, opened in 2011 at the same location as the former Zed’s Ethiopian Restaurant. With over thirty years of leadership experience in the hospitality and food and beverage industry, Sileshi was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but moved to the United States in the early 1970s to finish high school and attend college. Unable to return home after the civil war, he worked his way up in Marriott Hotels in New York and then in DC. Sileshi pulls from a satchel of recipes and traditional cooking techniques when sharing his culture through food.Ana Reyes is the manager of El Tamarindo in Adams Morgan, opened in 1982. Credited with popularizing the pupusa in Washington, DC, El Tamarindo is a staple of the neighborhood. Ana herself grew up in the restaurant, which her parents opened after immigrating from El Salvador. Ana is a first-generation Salvadoran-American and also organizes projects to support Salvadoran artisans. (Photo Credit: Jessica von Dop De Jesus)Andy Shallall is an artist, social entrepreneur, and founder/CEO of Busboys and Poets, a restaurant group in the Washington Metropolitan area where art, culture and politics intentionally collide over mindfully sourced food, drinks, books and event programming. With six, soon to be seven locations in Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia, Busboys and Poets is a home for progressives, artists, creatives and intellectuals. Born in Iraq and immigrating to the United States at the age of ten, Andy received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Catholic University and attended Howard Medical School and Robert Smith’s University of Maryland School of Business. He is a husband and father of four.MODERATORAmy Riolo is an award – winning, best-selling, author of 11 books, chef, television personality, and educator, Amy is one of the world’s foremost authorities on culinary culture. She is known for sharing history, culture, and nutrition through global cuisine. A graduate of Cornell University, Amy makes frequent appearances on numerous television and radio programs both in the United States and abroad. Amy is the brand ambassador for the Maryland University of Integrative Health and the Pizza University and Culinary Arts Center. In 2019 she launched her private label collection of premium Italian imported culinary ingredients called Amy Riolo Selections.

CO-PRODUCERMarianne Tshihamba, originally from Congo, built a career as an event planner, which took her to over 30 countries and allowed her to indulge in her lifelong passion for food and travel. During her travels, she built in time to explore the local food scene – visiting markets, restaurants, producers, taking cooking classes and connecting with local experts willing and eager to share their knowledge. Back home, in Washington, DC, she started teaching in-person cooking classes with a focus on dishes and ingredients from her travels. As her classes gained popularity, she began appearing on morning talk shows as an international food expert. She launched <a href="https://www.gastrosoul.com/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">GastroSoul.com</a>, an online platform for exploring international food. GastroSoul offers virtual cooking classes, shares information on sourcing global ingredients, conducts interviews with international guests with a passion for the food from their home countries and hosts lively panels discussing timely food issues.

---------This event is free, but your donation makes our mission-driven programs, like this one, possible. We appreciate your generous contribution at any amount. This is a virtual, Zoom program. If you require accommodations for a disability, please email the DC History Center at programs@dchistory.org with your request at least two weeks before the program. We are committed to making events accessible for all participants.The DC History Center is a 501(c)3 non-profit educational organization that deepens understanding of our city's past to connect, empower, and inspire. As the only community-based nonprofit focused on the District’s history, our vision is to reach into all eight wards to preserve and elevate the stories of Washington's diverse people, neighborhoods, and institutions. Visit us at www.dchistory.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @dchistory.The DC History Center gratefully recognizes the support of the DC Historic Preservation Office and Office of Planning; the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities; and Humanities DC, as part of the "SHARP Grant Program," an initiative funded by the National Endowment of the Humanities.

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Who Feeds the District?

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