About This Episode

What innovations will emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic? On this episode, host Billy Shore reconnects with noted DC chef Erik Bruner-Yang (Maketto, Brothers and Sisters, ABC PONY, Spoken English) on helping the community. “This has been a wake-up call for me. I’ve always been wading in the water of being a public servant and [I’m] finally jumping into it,” says Bruner-Yang. He recently launched a crowdfunding plan called The Power of 10 that keeps restaurant workers employed while providing free meals to those in need. “I’ve spent the last 15 years of my life working and building up this neighborhood that we live in, and when this passes, that could all be gone… We can make a difference and leverage the resources we have just to try to keep our communities intact,” he observes. His four restaurants have had to downsize from 225 employees to about 30. “Food security issues have existed long before this pandemic - the pandemic only highlights how bad it is.” Listen to this informative discussion about one small business owner’s innovative plan to help workers and communities.

Resources and Mentions:

Erik Bruner-Yang

Erik Bruner-Yang

Chef/Owner

Erik Bruner-Yang kicked off his hospitality career as general manager of Sticky Rice, a sushi restaurant in Washington DC. Around this time, he developed a deeper appreciation for Taiwanese cuisine. In 2011, he opened Toki Underground, a ramen shop that won Eater DC’s “Best New Restaurant” the same year. Bruner-Yang has since opened several other DC establishments, including Maketto. All Bruner-Yang concepts are housed under the group Foreign National. He is also the creator of Power of 10 Initiative, launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to address loss of jobs and food insecurity caused by the pandemic.