Interviewing strangers over a meal since 2008 (as featured in the Washington Post)
The 136th dinner interview is my meal with Doudgy “Dew” Charmant, a well-known Washington, D.C., artist. Painting in vibrant, warm colors with acrylics and oils, his works often focus on human expressions with startling depth — drawing the viewer in and keeping them engaged. His creations tell stories that can…
Since 1986, Frank Brigtsen has owned and operated the namesake restaurant Brigtsen’s, a New Orleans landmark. For the 100th dinner interview, in September 2017, Frank talked with me about how he got into cooking, training under the famous Chef Paul Prudhomme, and how he set up his own place —…
The first Bee Lady Day took place in Hull, East Yorkshire, last week to honor the life of fundraiser Jean Bishop. Jean, featured as the 69th dinner stranger in December 2014, was renowned in the region for her work. For decades, she’d dress in an eye-catching bumblebee costume to raise…
Born and raised in Havana, Cuba, Sebastian Arcos started to turn against the Castro regime in his late teens. His family, including his internationally noted dissident father, became targets of the government. For the 99th dinner interview, in Miami in July 2017, Sebastian told me about his eventual move to…
Emmy-nominated writer and standup comedian Alex English — recently a writer on “Saturday Night Live” and several years ago the 112th stranger featured on this site (I’ll let you decide which honor is most prestigious) — is performing in Austin, Texas, this coming weekend. He’ll be at the Cap City…
Broadway fans may appreciate the 98th meal with a stranger, which was actually two strangers — Tony Award-winner Santino Fontana and his wife Jessica. Both actors, they didn’t know each other when they moved to New York to pursue their careers on stage, but eventually they met and were married…
In the interests of expanding the readership of this site beyond just my mum and dad (though I’m grateful for them), a couple of friends suggested that I start posting my articles to Substack. And I do as told, so the Dining With Strangers Substack is now up. Feel free…
Following on from yesterday’s Throwback Thursday article highlighting my dinner with the 97th stranger Jim Obergefell, there’s a related event coming up next month at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. David Danzmayr, music director of the Oregon Symphony, will conduct a concert by the National Orchestral Institute and Festival…
The 97th dinner with a stranger took place in February 2017 with Jim Obergefell. He was the lead named plaintiff in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that led to the 5-4 ruling in June 2015 finding the Constitution guarantees the right of same-sex couples to marry across the United…
For more than 20 years, Dani Lubnitzki – better known as Dani Luv – has played the piano and cracked Borscht Belt-style jokes for his many fans at the much-loved New York restaurant Sammy’s Roumanian Steakhouse. In the 135th dinner interview, Dani shares tales from his past, all with a…