I am writing this in response to Mark Furstenberg's Washington Post Article from last week. Before I could get this written, Sam Hiersteiner wrote a defense in the Huffington Post. I don't have the voice behind me to be writing blog posts that make it to big DC newspapers but I do have an opinion that I think should be heard. I think that Furstenberg's article makes a few good
points, the main being the availability to affordable produce. But I am biased because
I grew up in a community surrounded by farms and ranches. We have had regular access to
fresh produce, meat and dairy.
DC for a
long time was known for meat, potatoes, and politics. A history of being a mediocre
food town where steakhouses thrived, a few French cuisine places for the chic
were dotted amongst them, but overall a place where food creativity came to die,
just like non-partisan politics. While that food scene may have been true at
one point in time, those like Furstenberg who make that claim now have
failed to notice a quiet but powerful revolution that has been building in and
around the DC area. The steakhouses are still top-notch but that's just one
TINY aspect of our thriving regional food scene.
We are
home to some of the best farmer’s markets, craft cocktail culture, thriving
vineyards in Virginia and Maryland, sustainable seafood initiative in the
Chesapeake Bay and have more new restaurants cropping up than you can shake a
fork at. It should be impossible to ignore the fact that D.C. has made an
entrance by kicking in the door!
DC has a
strong history of being a great location for drinking. Hell, the Ricky was
invented here and George Washington had one of the first distilleries while
living here. There are bartenders and there are mixologists. Like a Sommelier (which we have some great ones),
a mixologist has an understanding and ardent passion for their craft. We have
nationally renowned mixologists like Derek Brown, Owen Thompson, BryanTetorakis, and Bill Thomas. All are known for pushing the limits of the
cocktails they serve. Hell…we have such a craft bartending scene that there
they started the D.C. Craft Bartenders Guild.
Furstenberg
also seems to ignore a vibrant community of local organizations, like Bread for the City, DC Greens, Common Good City Farm and City Blossoms.
Bread for the City launched City Orchard, the nation’s FIRST orchard run by a
food pantry and it is 2.75 acres in Beltsville. The orchard contains 1,000
trees and bushes, including apple, Asian pear, persimmon, blueberry and
blackberry. By the time they mature (in 2014), these plants will yield upwards
of 40,000 lbs. of fresh fruit — all of which will be
distributed to DC residents in need through Bread for the City’s two food
pantry locations. Bread for the City and the others mention are all working to
enliven people's interest in gardens, educate them about how to grow their own
vegetables on apartment sills and in backyards, and provide access to healthy
vegetables all across the city.
Yes,
there is room to improve but every city has room to improve. Furstenberg talks
about what “food scene” cities can boast about…Los Angelenos boast about
their diversity and how far they will drive to explore it, of markets in
Koreatown, Tehrangeles and Little Saigon. I lived and ate my
way through LA and I can tell you that many locals do not drive to explore it.
Believe me when I say that I was one of the only 2 or 3 non-Asians shopping and
eating on a regular basis in Little Saigon. The DC area has access to many diverse
cultures, and those who have open tastebuds the cultural areas are far more
open to allowing others to explore it. Young chefs in the area are also open to
exploring other food cultures than which they may have been trained in. I think
this is all a testament to DC’s strong food culture.
One Young Somm (aka Theo Rutherford)
