B. Smith Served Food and Hope

One of the country’s most recognizable lifestyle doyennes passed away earlier this week, and fans of B. Smith, the restauranteur, cookbook author, and model are still talking about her gracious style which marked her career from the runways of fashion to the arenas of domesticity.

Renarda and Helaine Williams were visiting the nation’s capital for a conference when they asked a friend who lived there to recommend a restaurant for barbecue fried chicken, he pointed them in the direction of B. Smith’s restaurant.

“We went to the restaurant for dinner the next day,” Williams recalled. “To our delight, Ms. Smith herself greeted us, ‘Is this your first time to B. Smith’s?’ she asked. We told her, ‘Yes’ and said the place had been highly recommended.”

Williams’ wife, Helaine, remembered the elegant décor and the hospitality that made a lasting impression.

“Considering all the good things I’d heard about B. Smith, I was not surprised at the Union Station locale of her D.C. restaurant, nor was I surprised at the décor,” Williams added. “The restaurant is closed, of course, but one can still go online (I went to Yelp.com) and see its exquisite lines and decor…high ceilings, Corinthian columns, alcove arches over doors and windows, beautiful dark woods, and those elegant white-clothed tables, all in rows. It looked palatial, but the atmosphere exuded welcoming warmth.”

It’s been about 10 years since the Williams had dinner at B. Smiths, and they concur with their friend’s assessment of the food. In 2013 it was reported the restaurant would close followed by the closings of Smith’s restaurants in Sag Harbor, New York and Manhattan. And not long after, Smith revealed her Alzheimer’s diagnosis.

For those who loved cooking and appreciated entertaining, B. Smith offered proof that Black Americans enjoy celebrating with a formal flourish. As Helaine Williams stated, “We were so happy and proud to see a black woman overseeing it all – B. Smith in particular.”

What B. Smith accomplished in the culinary world paid homage to generations, and a New York art exhibit at the Museum of Food and Drink, African/American: Making the Nation’s Table, will serve as the country’s first major exhibition recognizing the many “chefs, farmers, and food and drink producers”. The exhibit opens April 3 and will include nods to well-known Black chefs like James Hemings.

The White House Offer

Thomas Jefferson offered James Hemings the job as White House chef, but Hemings declined the position. Hemings was the brother of Sally Hemings, who scholars say evidence increasingly indicates was in a long-term relationship with Jefferson, resulting in the births of her six children.

According to an expert on the Hemings family, Jefferson took Hemings to France when the young man was 19 years-old and trusted him with some of the trip’s logistics.  

 “He goes to Rouen, makes the hotel reservation, comes back and then goes to Paris and is trained as a chef, that’s why Jefferson took him,” Historian Annette Gordon-Reed said.  “While he is there near the end of his stay, he hires a tutor to help him perfect his French. I think this is the first impression that he may be thinking about staying there because spending two years studying French and spending money for that would seem an odd thing to do if he expected to come right back to Virginia and stay. We see him becoming a professional, he comes back to America, is Jefferson’s cook in New York and in Philadelphia. He’s paid wages just like a white worker.”

Famed New Orleans Chef, Leah Chase, whose restaurant Presidents and Civil Rights icons visited, will also figure prominently into the MOFAD exhibit. Chase died last summer. The Williams recalled treating themselves to dinner at ‘Dooky Chase’s’ for their 13^th Anniversary. They say Chase teased them when she heard that Renarda Williams was a native of Louisiana, living in Little Rock. According to the couple, Chase stated, “She kidnapped you?” as she looked in Helaine’s direction.

The MOFAD exhibit provides America an opportunity to learn more about some of the most well-known Black chefs. Hemings, Chase, and B. Smith are a few of the names. And, Smith’s legacy includes her decision to use her platform to share her Alzheimer’s diagnosis, allowing her to serve others beyond her restaurants.