Dish City

Surprise! It's a special Thanksgiving episode of Dish City.

Thanksgiving is one of the few holidays with a set dinner menu. Despite the obvious dishes, families and friends all over D.C. put their own spin on tradition every year. Patrick and Ruth interview one Washingtonian who tried to make last year's Thanksgiving the most D.C. Thanksgiving ever. Plus: Patrick and Ruth get into the kitchen and cook together for the first time.

Recipes: dishcity.org/thanksgiving

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From high-powered creatives and business executives in New York, to lawyers and politicians in D.C., the power lunch has long been a staple for the wealthy and powerful. And the classic steakhouse has always been the quintessential setting for these meals.

But as more and more young people move to D.C., do power lunches still hold the cachet they once did? And, despite being known as a "steakhouse town" for decades, are D.C.'s steaks still the ultimate "power lunch"?

Ruth and Patrick explore the local lunch scene to see if what you eat in the middle of the day indicates how powerful you might be in D.C.

Please fill out our survey (dishcity.org/survey) so we can get a better sense of what you want most out of future episodes and events!

Meet us at Hawk 'n' Dove on Capitol Hill, October 29, from 6-8 p.m. to discuss this episode and more. Details: dishcity.org/sidedish

Twitter & Instagram: @dishcity Email: [email protected]

Leave us a tip at wamu.org/supportdishcity.

Theme music by Daniel Peterschmidt

D.C. has historically been part of the American South. But as D.C.'s population has grown and diversified, its obvious ties to the South are starting to fade. Patrick and Ruth dine at the Florida Avenue Grill and Succotash, and take a detour through local football history, to learn what D.C.'s Southern and Soul Food restaurants tell us about our regional roots.

Meet us at Busboys & Poets in Anacostia, October 22, from 6-8 p.m. to discuss this episode and more! Details: dishcity.org/sidedish

Twitter & Instagram: @dishcity

Email: [email protected]

Theme music by Daniel Peterschmidt.

Dish City depends on the generosity of listeners like you! Donate at wamu.org/supportdishcity.

The pupusa is one of the most recognizable dishes in El Salvador and one of the most delicious street foods in the world. It's loved locally and yet restaurants that serve and celebrate just Salvadoran food seem underrepresented in the District. Ruth and Patrick sample local Salvadoran Mexican cuisine from Audi Field, El Tamarindo and Gloria's Pupuseria to figure out how lesser-known immigrant cuisines distinguish themselves in D.C. Meet us at Reliable Tavern, October 15, from 6-8 p.m. to discuss this episode and more! Details: dishcity.org/sidedish Twitter & Instagram: @dishcity Email: [email protected] Theme music by Daniel Peterschmidt. Additional music by Xenia Rubinos. Support our work by donating at wamu.org/supportdishcity.

Washingtonians have been pouring blood red, sticky-sweet mumbo sauce over chicken wings and fries for decades. That's why, when the D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said it "annoyed" her and hadn't heard of the sauce until she was an adult, she caused an uproar. What would it mean if mumbo sauce wasn’t even from D.C.? We trace the mysterious origins of D.C.'s choice condiment and consider what it takes to stake a claim on a dish: history or pride? Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @dishcity. Join us for our Tuesday meetups to discuss our most recent episode. Details about our next event are at dishcity.org/sidedish. Theme music is by Daniel Peterschmidt. Leave us a tip at wamu.org/supportdishcity.

Jumbo slice is divisive. A single, floppy slice is longer than most diners' forearms. While it's a favorite among late night partiers, especially in Adams Morgan, it's often derided as "drunk food" and has historically been blamed for all the fights and litter on 18th street on weekends. Ruth and Patrick call on pizza experts near and far to understand why jumbo slice has stood the test of time -- and why it's so beloved. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @dishcity. Dish City depends on the generosity of listeners like you! Donate at wamu.org/supportdishcity. Join us for our Tuesday meetups to discuss our most recent episode. Details about our next event are at dishcity.org/sidedish. Theme music is by Daniel Peterschmidt. Additional music in this episode is by Vitamin Tramp and Blue Dot Sessions.

Ethiopian cuisine is a D.C. mainstay, so when Ruth and Patrick taste "fast-casual Ethiopian" at Union Market, they have questions. What does it mean when a chef tries to put a new spin on dishes that are thousands of years old? We visit a family restaurant that's sticking to tradition, talk to a chef who tried to make the "Rasika of Ethiopian food," and collect some scorching hot takes from perhaps the best-known Ethiopian chef out there, Marcus Samuelsson. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @dishcity. Dish City depends on the generosity of listeners like you! Donate at wamu.org/supportdishcity. If you’re based in the D.C. area, we host meetups to discuss our latest episode on Tuesday evenings at local bars and restaurants. You can find out more at our website, dishcity.org. Our theme music is by Daniel Peterschmidt.

The half-smoke is the first food that comes to mind when we think about D.C.'s "iconic" foods. But when Ruth and Patrick take a trip to Ben's Chili Bowl, which made the half-smoke famous, Ruth orders a hot dog by mistake and realizes she doesn't really know what a half-smoke is. We take a trip to a sausage factory, hop back in time to 1958 when Ben's Chili Bowl opened and foray into the struggle playing out between old and new D.C.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

Dish City depends on the generosity of listeners like you! Donate at wamu.org/supportdishcity.

If you're based in the D.C. area, we host meetups on Tuesday evenings at bars and restaurants around town. You can find out more at our website, dishcity.org.

Our theme music is by Daniel Peterschmidt. Other music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions and Pierce Murphy.

A new podcast from WAMU asks what we can learn about Washington, D.C. through its iconic foods. Hosts Patrick Fort and Ruth Tam trek around the city and meet the people eating, making, and fighting for the city's staples. New episodes on Thursdays starting September 12th.