Makini Howell

Makini Howell is a vegan chef and restaurateur in Seattle, Washington. Her flagship restaurant, Plum Bistro, is a vegan fine-dining restaurant in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Makini Howell
Culinary career
Cooking styleVegan fine dining
Websiteplumbistro.com

History

Howell was raised vegan.[1] Her parents have since the 1990s owned vegan sandwich shops and sold vegan sandwiches through co-ops in the region, and Howell grew up working in her family's sandwich shops.[1][2]:64

Howell worked in New York City as a graphic designer and a clothing designer, including for Jay-Z's Rocawear, then moved back to the Northwest to pursue a renewed interest in the culinary world.[1][3]

She opened Plum Bistro in 2009.[4] In 2013 Howell published Plum.[5] In 2014 she appeared on the Queen Latifah Show.[1] In 2015 Stevie Wonder hired her as personal chef during his yearlong, 44-city Songs In The Key Of Life tour.[1][6]

In addition to Plum Bistro, Howell also operates a catering company, food truck Plum Burgers, casual eatery Plum Pantry in Seattle Center’s Armory, and dessert shop Sugar Plum.[1] According to vegan lifestyle magazine Laika, Plum Burgers, which launched in 2013, was the first vegan burger food truck in the United States.[3]

Howell supported Seattle's 2012 required paid sick leave law and 2015 $15 minimum wage hike.[7][8] She spoke at the 2014 White House Summit on Working Families about her support of the minimum wage increase.[7]

Reception

In 2019 Julia Moskin and John Eligon, writing in the New York Times, named her to their list of "16 Black Chefs Changing Food in America".[9]

Modern Farmer named Plum Bistro one of the 15 best vegan restaurants in the country in 2018.[10]

In 2017 Tasting Table named it one of the eight best vegan restaurants in the U.S and called them "the OG of Pacific Northwestern vegan dining."[4] James Beard award-winning food writer Karen Page featured Howell in her Kitchen Creativity (2017).[1]

BuzzFeed named Plum Bistro one of 24 "bucket list" vegan restaurants in 2015.[11]

Page and fellow Beard winner Andrew Dornenburg featured Howell in their Vegetarian Flavor Bible (2014).[1][12]

Shape named Plum Bistro one of the top 10 upscale vegan restaurants in the United States.[13]

See also

References
  1. Denn, Rebekah (2017-11-21). "Chef Makini Howell: 'I've worked really hard to make veganism something delicious'". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  2. Page, Karen (2014-10-14). The Vegetarian Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity with Vegetables, Fruits, Grains, Legumes, Nuts, Seeds, and More, Based on the Wisdom of Leading American Chefs. Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-316-24417-6.
  3. "The Intrepid Chef: Makini Howell". Laika Magazine. 26 November 2013. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  4. Saladino, Emily. "The 8 Best Vegan Restaurants in America". Tasting Table. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
  5. Howell, Makini (2013-04-23). Plum: Gratifying Vegan Dishes from Seattle's Plum Bistro. Sasquatch Books. ISBN 978-1-57061-837-6.
  6. "I Cooked for Stevie Wonder: Makini Howell Redefines Vegan". Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  7. Quittner, Jeremy (2014-07-01). "Why One Seattle Employer Thinks Paying Workers $15 an Hour Is a Good Idea". Inc.com. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  8. Dinh, Elizabeth (2012-09-01). "New law requires paid sick leave at Seattle businesses". KOMO. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  9. Eligon, John; Moskin, Julia (2019-07-16). "16 Black Chefs Changing Food in America". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  10. Ben Yehuda, Anna. "15 of the Best Vegan Restaurants in America". Modern Farmer. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
  11. Paul, Lauren. "24 Vegan Restaurants That Belong On Your Culinary Bucket List". Buzzfeed. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  12. Page, Karen (2014-10-14). The Vegetarian Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity with Vegetables, Fruits, Grains, Legumes, Nuts, Seeds, and More, Based on the Wisdom of Leading American Chefs. Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-316-24417-6.
  13. Yolen-Cohen, Malerie. "Top 10 Upscale Vegan Restaurants in America". Shape. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
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