Bonus: New York with Zoe Saldaña

0:00This is an iHeart Podcast.

0:30Experience cloud-like comfort with high-resilience foam that's hypoallergenic and never needs fluffing. The sturdy steel frame ensures longevity, and the modular pieces can be rearranged anytime. Check out washablesofas.com and get up to 60 % off your Anabay sofa, backed by a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. If you're not absolutely in love, send it back for a full refund. No return shipping or restocking fees. Every penny back. Upgrade now at washablesofas.com. Offers are subject to change, and certain restrictions may apply. You are listening to Ruthie's Table 4 in partnership with Montclair. My family has been in New York since 1960s, and I lived there until I was 10.

1:16From 10 to 17, I was in Dominican Republic. And you went back to New York? When I was 17. My mom is working. My stepdad is working. My sisters and I were finding our afternoon sort of placements. I was working also on the weekends at Burger King. You wait. Stop there. What were you doing? I worked at Burger King. And what did you do there? I did the drive-through. You know, I would say, hi, welcome to Burger King, might I take your order? There was a lady from, a Guyanese lady who was like my boss, and I just loved her accent. Welcome to Burger King, might I take your order? And I would like, I wasn't making fun of her.

1:54I would just try to kind of acquire this, this accent. Cause it was also like, I, now that I'm back in New York, I'm reconnecting with all these multicultures all over the place. And a lot of, a big part of them was connecting with other Caribbean people. You know, we're from Spanish Antillas. So the West Indies, these English Antillas and the British islands or whatever, like we didn't really have that in Dominican Republic. So now I'm connecting with Jamaicans. I'm connecting with people from Aruba, St. Lucia, Grand Cayman, Cuba. And Queens is definitely a very big West Indian. And so is Brooklyn, West Indian melting pot.

2:35So I was going bananas for the food. It was so good. And so I worked with a whole bunch of Caribbean people, but we were from different parts at Burra King, and it was fun. I feel like that's when my curiosity over human behavior and who we are as people began. I think a restaurant does teach you that. Absolutely. I would say that walk into a restaurant, look at a table, everybody having fun, and everybody has a story. That's why I really love walking in a restaurant. And one of my managers was this woman who must have been in her late 30s, but she drove to work in a motorcycle. You know, she was just, stop, can I get a muffin junior?

3:11Like she would just talk like, I'm a muffin junior. She just had a way of talking. And I just remember I would just doze off observing people. And hearing their accents, because now I'm in New York again, I'm getting to hear the world again. My life was very multicultural. It was from the beginning. I think growing up in New York, you're just around just the world at all times. Pick a block and you'll have like three continents and 10 different countries. And you can eat. And I feel like you do get to know people and communities through their food. And a lot happens when you break bread with individuals.

3:50You just, I don't know, there's an unspoken word that makes it permissible for you to connect with people that look obviously different, speak differently, smell differently from you. And yet through the food that they're sharing with you, you get a piece of who they are and vice versa. So New York is that special still to this day for me. Did you have Chinese food? Did you have any food? Oh, my God. Did you get your cat? Every Sunday. Did you? Oh, my God. The American families, they go like every Sunday to like a diner and they'll have like pancakes. Oh, God. Why would I start the day eating cake?

4:26Like I don't, you know, but like I said, I have a savory tooth. So we would wake up and go either to Flushing in Queens, which is the second biggest sort of like Chinatown Asian community outside of Chinatown in downtown Manhattan. Or we would just go to Chinatown and we would have dim sum. You know, on Saturday nights you have Korean barbecue, Friday nights you have Korean barbecue, or sometimes if my family that was visiting from Dominican Republic that are half Dominican, half Japanese, they were in town, we would go have shabu shabu. Or you go to 7th Street in Roosevelt and you would have like Indian food.

5:03That was our community there for Indian food. That shows a real curiosity. I mean, that shows a passion that they really cared about. It was always through food. Mind you, there is still a simplicity. We didn't go any deeper than that. But by the time I would meet someone that comes from that part of the world, and if I've tried their dish before, I felt like I already knew half of them. Eating other world's foods feeds your curiosity, and you do remain open, going, okay, so I know your dishes, some of your dishes. It's like, I want to know more about you.

5:42Thank you for listening to Ruthie's Table 4 in partnership with Montclair.

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6:32Visit washablesofas.com to upgrade your home. Right now, you can shop up to 60 % off store-wide with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Shop now at washablesofas.com. Add a little... to your life. Offers are subject to change, and certain restrictions may apply. Parking shouldn't slow you down. ParkWiz gives every driver a shortcut. Book ahead, save up to 50%, and skip the hassle of circling the block. Park smarter, park faster. ParkWiz. Download the ParkWiz app today and save every time you park. This is an iHeart Podcast.