D.C. chefs shape America's cookbook

Anna Spiegel

Two pages from a cookbook: left black ad with "The American Table" script and food; right red background with a dessert in a glass bowl topped with ice cream and a spoon. — "The American Table," a partnership with America 250, features recipes from D.C. chefs alongside others across the country. Photo: Courtesy the American Table

D.C.'s culinary scene is getting a starring role in America 250's official cookbook, courtesy of the team behind Netflix's hit series "Chef's Table."

Why it matters: Washington has evolved into one of the country's most influential food cities, thanks largely to immigrant communities and chefs whose cuisines continue to redefine what "American food" means.

Driving the news: Chef's Table Projects has partnered with America250 and Bon Appétit editor-in-chief Jamila Robinson on "The American Table," a cookbook featuring recipes from over 85 chefs across the country.

More than a dozen D.C.-area chefs are featured, including José Andrés, Kwame Onwuachi, Jeremiah Langhorne, Kevin Tien, Amy Brandwein, Michael Rafidi, Masako Morishita, Erik Bruner-Yang, Rose Previte and Rob Rubba.
At their D.C. restaurants, each chef tells a different American story — from Onwuachi's Afro-Caribbean cooking at Dōgon and Rafidi's Palestinian-inspired cuisine at Albi to Langhorne's hyper-local Mid-Atlantic menu at The Dabney and Morishita's homestyle Japanese food at Perry's.

The big picture: Rather than looking backward, the book aims to capture the essence of American cuisine as it exists today.

"We wanted to focus on what America looks like right now," Justin Connor, president of Chef's Table Projects, tells Axios. "Could we create a snapshot... that when this is being read 50 years from now, people will understand what American food looked like in 2026."

Zoom in: Connor said D.C.'s chef roster was chosen in part because of the city's global nature.

"I hope what we've expressed is just how diverse the city is, and how many types of cuisine have made American cuisine here," he said.

Find it: The cookbook is available for pre-order now ($75) and will be released nationwide in October.

D.C. chefs shape America's cookbook

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