\n<\/p>\n
Welcome to Deep Dish, a weekly roundup of food and entertainment news. Last time we discussed Prue Leith\u2019s exit from Bake Off.<\/em><\/p>\n Food is political. It\u2019s been said so often that it feels trite, nevertheless it\u2019s perhaps truer now than ever. Take a look at Minnesota, where almost 100 food shelves in the state have signed an open letter calling for an end to the surge in federal immigration agents in the state. Or look at the network of food-based mutual aid that\u2019s sprung up across the state. Or the many restaurants refusing to serve ICE agents.<\/p>\n Today, restaurants across the country are participating in a widespread general strike in an effort to protest ICE activity. In this week\u2019s Deep Dish, we speak to two restaurant owners on why they\u2019ve chosen to close down for the day, and what message they\u2019re hoping to send by striking. Also this week: your favorite food influencer may have tried to post about ICE, only to find themselves censored, tariffs on wine are causing problems, and, amongst all of this, Noma begins its residency in LA\u2014someone get me something fermented STAT.<\/em> \u2014 Sam Stone, staff writer<\/em><\/p>\n Closing unexpectedly on a day of service is no small burden on a restaurant, where bottom lines rely heavily on regular hours and full tables. Many food establishments around the country nonetheless deemed the sacrifice worthwhile today, joining a nationwide strike against ICE\u2019s mass deportations and violence against protesters in Minneapolis and across the country.<\/p>\n Evan Hanczor, chef-owner of Little Egg in Brooklyn, NY, grappled this week with how best to support the effort, weighing the impact on their staff and finances. \u201cBut earlier this week a couple of our servers asked if we’d be closing on Friday and offered their willingness to forego their shifts in solidarity with the strike,\u201d he wrote to Bon App\u00e9tit, prompting a team-wide discussion and ultimate consensus to close in solidarity with the movement. He\u2019s been heartened to see the chain reaction of other restaurants following suit. \u201cIt’s not a choice every small business can make, but I think seeing it happen to the degree it has has led more folks to act and speak publicly in some way,\u201d he said. \u201cWe all need permission structures and community support to allow us to find our way towards action and I think we’re seeing folks find that in the actions of others here.\u201d<\/p>\n Over on the opposite coast in Los Angeles, local cafe Sqirl similarly closed in solidarity with their community, one of the first impacted by ICE activity, they wrote in a statement to Bon App\u00e9tit. \u201cThe raids that followed caused real harm to our staff, our neighbors, and the broader restaurant community,\u201d they said. \u201cWhen that happened, people across the country showed up in solidarity and spoke out in support, and it meant a lot to us as Angelenos.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt its core, our industry is about bringing families and communities together, not ripping them apart,\u201d Sqirl wrote in their note. \u201cWe\u2019re participating in this collective action to make that point crystal clear, and we are proud to stand alongside the workers, families, and communities who have made the same decision to honor those principles.<\/p>\n For his part, Hanczor hopes the collective action, and Little Egg\u2019s own participation in it, \u201cwill be received as a small jolt of realization and encouragement for our community and customers,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen we were considering closing I thought, \u2018this national strike call is cool, I wish it could really reach the level it needs to to work.\u2019 And then I had the thought, \u2018oh, I (and the restaurant) [are] decisive in that happening, each of us are.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\nRestaurants Strike Across the Country Against ICE<\/h2>\n