Fighting Injustice with Food Sovereignty

TRUTH IN HISTORY ON A PLATE

Hosted by Chef Ramon Shiloh

October 12th at Checkered Flag Tavern II

This is a ticketed event! Contact for more information

This Indigenous Peoples Day, and the birthday of our fearless host Elizabeth, we invite you to a culinary experience rooted in community, resilience, and justice.

My friend Elizabeth has created a bar that welcomes everyone and fosters connection over division.

My menu aligns with this philosophy: food as activism, food as truth, food as resistance. At The NEW Checkered Flag Tavern, we challenge prejudice not with words, but with flavor, intention, and history on a plate.

Throughout my journey, I’ve showcased indigenous ingredients in places people might not expect, from five star kitchens to dive bars. Dive bars are often associated with fried foods and less health conscious choices, yet I have always chosen ingredients thoughtfully, nourishing the community even in casual settings.

Native foods were once largely absent from mainstream culinary spaces, reflecting the broader invisibility of First Nations people. Despite wars, forced removals, social assimilation, and genocide, Native people preserved knowledge, passing it down through food to future generations.

Bars are living, messy, and real spaces, just like the communities they serve. The NEW Checkered Flag Tavern retains its character while promoting safety, joy, and unity. “Flags of BLM, and the rainbow” fly above as symbols of inclusion and resistance. My menu mirrors this environment. It’s bold, honest, rooted in history, and dedicated to fighting injustice with creativity, care, and respect.

End of Summer Harvest (Portland Oregon/USA)
Foraged Ingredients, Snap Peas, Radishes, Heirloom Tomatoes, Meyer Lemon and Green Chile Hush Puppies with Blackberry Dressing, Flaked Sea Salt.

This dish honors the land and the knowledge of the people who came before us, who took only what was needed and gave thanks. In a dive bar where the environment is raw, real, and unpretentious, these lightly fried cornmeal hush puppies bright with Meyer lemon, sweetened with blackberry, mirror the simplicity and abundance of nature itself. It is comfort, tradition, and gratitude rolled into one bite.

United States Government Ration Food (Bison Frybread Memorial Observed)

(Southern and Midwestern United States)

Brined Coffee Ground Bison Meat with Whipped White Beans, Green Hatch Chile Marinated Tomatoes, Smoked Charred Pickled Onions, Sweet Potato Purée, Root Vegetables, and Bison Tallow Molasses Gravy.

Here, the plate becomes a memorial. Frybread, born from forced government rations after the Indian Removal Act, tells a story of loss, survival, and reclamation. The bison, once nearly wiped from the land, is restored on the plate as a symbol of cultural renewal. This dish embodies remembrance, resilience, and the reclamation of sovereignty, the perfect complement to a space like The Checkered Flag II, where history, grit, and survival stories live in every corner.

Strength in Numbers Starting with One (Immigration We Stand)

(United States, Mexico, South America)

Smoked and Fried Poblano Chile Stuffed with Chayote Squash, Corn Masa, White Beans, Nopales Cactus, Tomatoes, and Queso Fresca. Finished with Red Mole, Salsa Blanca, and Avocado Sauce.

Every ingredient tells a story of resilience, migration, and hope. This dish honors the immigrant families whose labor sustains our communities while highlighting the cruelty and fear imposed by unjust systems. Here, in a dive bar that values inclusivity, we celebrate these stories through food, giving voice to resilience, compassion, and the enduring human spirit.

Native Flapjacks: The Cycle of Life (Youth to Elderhood)

(Great Lakes and Southwest Contemporary Fusion)
Sweet Potato and Wild Rice Pancakes with Ancho Chile Blueberry Sauce, Fried Sage, and Charred Herbed Cultured Butter.

This dish reflects life’s cycles, from youth to elderhood, honoring both the sacred gifts of the land and the wisdom passed through generations. In the lively, sometimes chaotic environment of a dive bar, it reminds us that transformation, learning, and reflection are possible in even the most unexpected spaces.

--Ramon Shiloh

 

Skagit River Interpretive Center’s 2026 Poster Revealed

 

As the year closes and a new beginning rises, the eagle soars beneath the sun’s radiant light. Its wings carry the wisdom of the skies, while the salmon below, its chosen source of sustenance, reminds us of life’s cycles and the skill required to endure them. In the distance, Mother Earth flows gently through the Skagit Valley, grounding the eagle’s flight with her nurturing strength. Together, these elements embody resilience, freedom, and the sacred balance of life. 

The eagle, illuminated from above and nourished from below, lives with pride and strength within the harmony of the cosmos.

I would like to thank the “Skagit River Interpretive Center“ for allowing me to illustrate another year of artwork in support of their mission to educate the public about the health and well-being of our beautiful eagles in the Pacific Northwest. This marks my fourth year creating art for their cause, and it is an honor to contribute to such meaningful work. To know more about the organization, go to https://skagiteagle.org/

Thank you 💕✨

🎨medium: charcoal, prismacolor premier pencils, koh-i-noor rapidograph pens, Iwata airbrush, digital art for placement and refinement.

©Ramon Shiloh/2025-‘26

Dinner at “VINBERO” with Chef Ramon Shiloh

 

I want to say thank you so much to “Vinbero” for giving me a place to share my stories through food. On September 12th and 13th I will be cooking dinners that explore First Nations foods, weaving them together to tell a story of Native American history, community, and the resilience of how far we have come, carrying traditional values into modern life.

The six courses I am serving are really a journey into my own life here in the Pacific Northwest. Each dish carries pieces of what I have lived, loved, and held close to my heart.

The first course takes on the myth of “firewater,” speaking honestly about both the harm it brought and the strength of those who carried its weight.

The second course, “Grazing in Summer,” is a salad that brings together the medicines of the Pacific Northwest, essential during the harvest seasons.

The third dish, “Lifecycle of Salmon and Fried Clams,” is at the heart of this place. It tells the story of land and sea coming together, of natural migration and memory, and of the endless cycle of renewal.

The fourth dish, “Duwamish Long House (Recognition),” is a smoked vegetarian terrine. Its form reflects the steadiness of the longhouse and honors the home that once belonged to Chief Seattle.

The fifth dish, “Four Legged Land Acknowledgment, Three Ways,” brings together bison, venison, and elk in acorn tortillas. It is bold and grounding, but also gentle, a way of honoring survival, balance, and the ties between land, food, and identity.

The final dish, “Native Flapjacks: The Cycle of Life, Youth to Elderhood,” is a dessert that speaks to the circle of life. It reminds us of the sweets we loved as children and the way those flavors follow us as we grow older, carrying memory and innocence full circle.

“Vinbero” in Edmonds, Washington is such a special place to share this story. Kris and Kali Kelnero, dear friends of mine, have been asking me to collaborate for years, and now after fifteen years we finally made it happen. I am so grateful to them for opening their space and for making this dinner possible.

If you are interested in joining us on September 12 or 13, go HERE. We still have seats available on September 13. I would love to share this dinner with you.