A pleasure to have Spike Lee and his wife Tonya Lewis Lee join us for lunch at 5th & K! 

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

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Split This Rock Poem of the Week: Karenne Wood

The Poet I Wish I Was    1. A white poet whose work I admire said she feels most inspired on her daily four-mile walk through a forest. 2. I wish I had time to walk four miles daily. I can usually manage one mile with dogs. My dogs are distractible, and they distract me. … Continued

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Busboys and Poets Book Review: Set the World on Fire

In this substantial entry into the history of Black radical politics, Keisha N. Blain uncovers the legion of Black women that made waves in the growing Black nationalist and Garveyite movements of the early Twentieth Century. Black nationalism, which promotes the establishment of a Black nation state as the answer to racial oppression, first gained … Continued

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The Nepal Chronicles #5

Thursday, March 5, 2021… I have some time to kill before dinner tonight. So I venture into the narrow uneven streets of Thamel. The area is known for its shops carrying trinkets for budding Buddhists as well as trekking gear for hopeful trekkers. You can find a dream catcher or a meditation bowl or Tibetan … Continued

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DC VegFest Media Party at Takoma

We kicked off another year of DC VegFest by hosting the media party in the Guillén Room at Takoma to about 60 local and national influencers. For the last four years we’ve sponsored DC VegFest and have provided an overflowing buffet of various vegan foods from our catering and regular menu, like vegan “beef” sliders, … Continued