#PaintTheStorefronts

These are trying times for people and local, small businesses across the globe. Instead of boarding up our windows after an unfortunate act of vandalism, we’ve responded by spreading messages of optimism and hope by hiring local artists to #PaintTheStorefronts. All of our seven locations are painted, and we are spreading the movement; already we’ve painted uplifting messages on José Andres’ restaurants and a Yoga studio in Takoma.

We continue to be open at 14th & V, 450K, Shirlington, Hyattsville and Anacostica locations, employing as many as we can. Thank you to our community for the continuous support <3

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14th & V Busboys and Poets
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Hyattsville
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The Making of Busboys and Poets

A Seat at the Table: The Making of Busboys and Poets

We’re proud to announce A Seat at the Table: The Making of Busboys and Poets, the new memoir from our CEO and Founder, which reveals the vision, challenges, and triumphs behind opening Busboys and Poets. Packed with misadventures, unexpected triumphs, and insights on race, business and politics, Andy Shallal’s memoir takes us on a “How I Built … Continued

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For Langston Hughes on His 123 Birthday

Speech given on February 1, 2024 in Havana, Cuba In 1927 Langston Hughes walked into a Cuba amid an emerging community of artists, intellectuals, and radicals.  He saw a “sunrise in a new land [– a day – in his words]sic – full of brownskin surprises, and hitherto unknown contacts in a world of color.”  … Continued

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Palestine Week 2024

January 18, 2024 – January 25, 2024 In keeping with our ongoing mission of uplifting racial and cultural connections, Busboys and Poets is hosting Palestine Week (January 18 through January 25, 2024). This week-long series of events will offer a diverse range of programming featuring Palestinian food, music, dance, poetry, discussions, and other enriching events. … Continued

Fusterlandia

8. Fusterlandia

Reflections from the Busboys and Poets Travel Tribe’s Cultural Exchange trip to Cuba (July 6-13, 2022) By Andy Shallal (@andyshallal CEO/Founder, Busboys and Poets) Jose Fuster aka the Picasso/Gaudi of Havana is a bundle of energy. At 70 something he is charming. Engaging. Full of life. And a brilliant artist and entrepreneur. He is the founder … Continued

Busboys and Poets Book Review: Pansy Boy

Busboys and Poets Book Review: Pansy Boy

Captivating, touching, and sincere, “Pansy Boy” tells the story of a thoughtful young boy who is tormented by his classmates because they perceive him as being different. With whimsical, thoughtful rhymes and a mixture of colorful imagery painted against a grayscale canvas, author and illustrator Paul Harfleet shows us how a seed planted by hate … Continued

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Everest Base Camp #17

Oxygen please or more Dawa wisdom After leaving the monastery I ask Dawa. How do you keep from slipping on these rocks. Dawa says. The foot has two parts. The thinker. And the doer. The thinker is the ball of the foot. The front of the foot. It senses things and can quickly adjust. It … Continued