Interviewing strangers over a meal since 2008 (as featured in the Washington Post)
There’s an organization in Washington, DC, called FuckUp Nights that features people sharing their stories of business failures. Back in July 2015 I had dinner with the group’s Meredith Denbow who talked about the benefits of openly talking about personal catastrophes. And now they’re looking for speakers for their next…
Throwback Thursday number nine is my May 2009 lunch in Columbia Heights, DC, with Mike Wilkinson and Alicia Wilkinson-Mehr — two of the founders of local pizza chain Pete’s New Haven Style Apizza. In the years since the interview, Pete’s has expanded to several more locations around the city, although…
“Jackpot,” a non-fiction book about the history of pot smuggling in South Carolina written by the 35th dining stranger Jason Ryan, is now available in audio book format. I read the original paper version and can highly recommend this well-written and fascinating tale. Over an August 2011 dinner in Charleston…
The eighth throwback Thursday is my May 2009 brunch in Manhattan with Gretchen Auer, who talked about achieving her long-time goal of moving from Ohio to the Big Apple. We dined at Ta Cocina on 9th Avenue, a nice place which sadly appears to have closed.
Hungry? Got an interesting story to tell about your life? Dine with me! I’ve updated my travel plans page, including upcoming trips to New York City and New Orleans. If you live in any of the places I’m visiting and want to be featured on Dining With Strangers, get in…
Want to see an entertaining adult variety show? Matt Yee has you covered next Saturday in New York. Matt is a drag singer-songwriter who performs for cruise lines several times a year, packing in gay and straight audiences to hear his riotous act. He covers a huge variety of songs…
The seventh throwback Thursday is to my May 2009 dinner in Brooklyn with single mother Lynda Eselp, who maintains a relentlessly upbeat outlook on life despite some past set-backs. In more up-to-date news, I’m tentatively scheduled to have the 118th dinner with a stranger next week in New York City….
The sixth throwback Thursday is to my March 2009 dinner with circus clown VeeKay (Diego Barquinero) at The Counter in Santa Monica, California. Diego has a fascinating story about how he got into a career under the Big Top. When we met, he showed up to the interview still in his work…
Frank Brigtsen, chef and owner of his namesake New Orleans restaurant Brigtsen’s, has been nominated for Outsanding Service in this year’s James Beard awards. I met Frank in September 2017 for the 100th dinner interview. He talked me through a number of menu options, explaining in detail the thought behind…
Continuing the sequential throwback Thursdays, here’s my fifth dinner interview — a meal way back in March 2009 with Dan Silverman, creator of the popular DC-area blog Prince of Petworth, which evolved into the current PoPville We met at the since-closed CommonWealth restaurant in Columbia Heights. At the time, Dan…