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Andy Shallal Brings Busboys and Poets to Anacostia
Artist, activist, restauranteur, and creator of creative communities Andy Shallal is the founder of the beloved Busboys and Poets group of restaurants in the Washington, D.C. area.
This week, he opened his newest location, in the historic DC neighborhood of Anacostia. In the midst of the celebration, Shallal took a few moments to talk to me about how he brings the community together with art, books, ideas, and great food.
Where does the name of the restaurant come from?
It comes from the great African-American poet Langston Hughes. He lived in the early part of the 20th century and became known as the “busboy poet.” He was working as a busboy, at the Wardman Park Hotel and one day a very famous poet by the name of Vachel Lindsey came in and Langston Hughes left some of his poetry next to Vachel Lindsey’s plate. Hughes watched Lindsey nodding approvingly as he looked at the writing. And the next day on his way to work Langston picked up a newspaper that said “Vachel Lindsay has discovered a busboy poet,” and that helped to take off his career from that day on.
Your restaurants are more than just a place to go and eat — they are really community centers for conversation and culture.
