#70. America’s Gentrified Food Culture, the Beauty of Dominican Cuisine, and the Chef’s Journey — Sashia Gabrieli Liriano

“But I think an important thing is making things inclusive. Before anything goes out to a customer, every single person in the kitchen and all of the servers try everything. We take input from everybody. Understanding that everyone knows what good food tastes like. Having an inclusive kitchen where everybody’s able to put their input in. I think that’s what builds a great menu.” - Sashia Liriano

Welcome back to another episode of Discover More.

This week, we continue our conversation with Sashia Liriano.

Sashia is a Dominican American chef who is the Chef de Cuisine at Friday, Saturday, Sunday, the #2 restaurant in the city according to Philly Magazine.

In part 1 of the interview, Sashia shares about her personal journey into the culinary world, so we recommend starting there for context around this week’s conversation.

In this episode, we bounce around to a wide range of food topics, ranging from recipes to recommendations to food insecurity.

Sashia explains what she looks for in a good restaurant and recommends some of her favorite places to eat and shop for groceries in Philadelphia.

She also shares about her experience growing up in the Bronx and how that informs her life today, both in and outside of the kitchen.

We also dive into an uncomfortable but important conversation around food insecurity. Not only is food inaccessibility damaging the health of disadvantaged populations, but it’s also disrupting the food systems and cultural traditions of many communities.

We both took so much away from this conversation and we encourage everyone to reflect on the topics discussed, especially around food inequality and our role in it.

We hope you enjoy this episode of Discover More, with us and Sashia Liriano.

 

Show Notes:

Sashia’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sashia_gabrieli_/

Friday Saturday Sunday’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friday.saturday.sunday/

Restaurant Website: https://www.fridaysaturdaysunday.com/

Sashia’s Favorite Restaurants in Philadelphia:

 - New American- Cadence: https://www.cadencerestaurant.com/

 - French- Forsythia: https://www.forsythiaphilly.com/

 - Chinese- David’s Mai Lai Wah: http://www.davidsmailaiwah.com/

 - Mexican- Burrito Feliz Foodtruck: https://www.instagram.com/burritofelizphilly/?hl=en

 - Pho- Nam Phuong: https://www.namphuongphilly.com/

 - Ramen- Terakawa Ramen: http://www.terakawaramen.com/

 - Sandwich- Stockyard Sandwich: https://www.stockyardphilly.com/

 - Sandwich- Middle Child: https://middlechildphilly.com/