The American Dream

I think a lot about the American Dream these days. It’s always in the news. There’s a new museum in DC dedicated to it. And it’s the core theme throughout most of my Drink•Eat•Walk DC food tour stories. Especially the ones about the specific restaurants we stop in.

Most of the stories follow a similar script: The owner comes from a humble background. They find a steady job in a restaurant. They work their butt off for years. They save their money. They open their own place. They work their butt off for years. They raise a family on the rewards from the hard work.

Starting your own business on your own makes you think a lot about this script. I always wish I could go back in time to when the owners finally decided to take that massive leap and open their own place. It would be so interesting to talk to them how they felt then vs. how they feel now.

So I had all this going through my mind the other day when I was running through Woodley Park near the zoo here in DC. I pretty much stopped in my tracks when I saw the three folks in this picture standing back and looking at a restaurant space for lease.

They were chatting some. They were pointing some. But mostly they were just looking. And dreaming.