Food & Drink PEOPLE
combined with a Cambodian-inspired syrup,” Mei says. “At the end of the day, this is the community and culture we are cultivating in San Diego and what our menu represents—it is globally inspired, locally sourced.” When Lydia Adombila had the opportunity to create a weekly special, she pulled from her native Ghana, making a jollof rice to share. “At first, no one was ordering it, and I was like, ‘Oh no!’” she says. “But within a short time, so many people ordered it … Then they said, ‘We want more jollof.’ [I was] dancing, singing, ‘Jollof, jollof!’ I was so happy.” Adombila, a 42-year-old single mother of five, completed the program and now has a part-time caregiving position while getting her GED in the hopes of becoming a nurse. While sharing treasured recipes brings program participants joy, it has also inspired confidence. When Melida McClain moved here from Lima, starting her career from scratch and without friends or family nearby, she wasn’t prepared for what an impact it would make to see her own Peruvian dishes—anticuchos and picarones—on the menu.
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NOVEMBER 2023
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