BY EMILY BRIDGE
When I first came to the Tenderloin, I didn’t get out much. I was young, in a new city for the first time, and I allowed myself to be intimidated by my surroundings. Mind you, that is no excuse to forego the gold that lies in this neighborhood. I hadn’t experienced such a diverse collection of vibrant cultures until now.
I’ll never forget the day when a good friend and I walked the two blocks to our favorite restaurant, sat down and poured ourselves a couple of piping hot cups of tea. This spot is well-known to host some of our most authentic conversations about what God is teaching us, what we’ve been wrestling through, and what we’re believing God for. (It’s really just a safe place for me to cry into my hummus in the presence of a friend).
On this particular day, we sat down, didn’t bother to look at the menu (we already knew what to order), and were greeted by our neighbor, the friendly hole-in-the-wall restaurant owner. He took his pad and pen in his hand and said, “so, the usual for you two today?” I could have squealed with joy. I’ve always wanted to have a usual, to be a regular. We felt like we had ‘made it’.
Each day we have opportunities to connect; we get to look people in the eye, to learn their names and to know them. We often subconsciously ignore or choose hurry instead of human in these moments. This was me, this is me. It takes work to change our habits and it doesn’t happen in a day.
Our neighborhood is filled with hundreds of family-owned restaurants: Un Cafecito, Yemen Kitchen, Z Zoul, Saigon Sandwich, El Rincon Yucateco and so many more. Food from every continent and many different countries are waiting to be tried, there are stories waiting to be told. In a world growing more anonymous and more hurried each day, we can all choose to bring each of us a little closer through food and through learning someone's name and remembering it.
Do you know the names of the baristas at your local coffee shop? What about the woman behind the counter at your favorite taqueria? These restaurants and the people that created them are the gold in our neighborhood. Celebrating our own cultures and diversity through food is something that we all have in common.
Do you have a usual?