Busboys and Poets
Busboys and Poets is a restaurant, bar, bookstore and community gathering place. First established in2005, Busboys and Poets was founded by owner Andy Shallal, an artist, activist, and restaurateur. After opening the flagship location at 14th and V Streets, NW DC, the neighboring residents, and the progressive community embraced Busboys and Poets, particularly activists opposed to the Iraq War. Busboys and Poets is now located in eight distinctive neighborhoods in the Washington D.C Metropolitan and Baltimore areas. It's ninth location in Columbia, MD is scheduled to open October 10th, 2021.
Busboys and Poets Tribal Statement
Busboys and Poets is a community where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted... a place to take a deliberate pause and feed your mind, body and soul... a space for art, culture and politics to intentionally collide... we believe that by creating such a space we can inspire social change and begin to transform our community and the world.
Our bookstore, Busboys and Poets Books, has space at each of our seven locations and engages with literature, politics, society, and social justice in a productive and exciting atmosphere. We have a deep commitment to showcasing books and authors—on a local and national level—who have contributed to conversations concerning great social struggles. Prominently featuring the black struggle for civil rights, this also extends to issues of women’s and LGBTQ+ liberation, and more generally to the experiences of all the dispossessed and marginalized in this country. As part of our bookstore’s mission, we feature titles, authors, and events throughout the year that highlight these struggles. We also feature a diverse selection of children’s and young adult books that help to engage the community at all levels.