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