The Woman Behind Ben's Chili Bowl

          I wrote this story for a Social Documentary class in Washington D.C. about this woman and the business she and her husband started 55 years ago and it continues to thrive. Ben's Chili Bowl has survived during some difficult times in American history. I was honored to have met and interview Virginia Ali, a true inspiration. I believe in supporting small businesses that lend strength to our American economy. Go out today and support those Ma and Pa shops!

Ben’s Chili Bowl has seen long lines of people outside its door for 55 years. They have hung picture after picture of celebrities who have eaten there. Owner Virginia Ali sat in her chair as customers passed by and gave her compliments, shook her hand and asked for her autograph. Ali is unimpressed by her fame.

“I like to be in the background,” Ali said.

The devotion of the community, visits from President Barack Obama and France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy, as well as its biggest supporter, Bill Cosby, have helped Ben’s Chili Bowl boom and become a “must-go-to place” in D.C.

Cosby has been eating there since 1959. The friendship between the Alis and Cosby has flourished over the years. Cosby courted his wife, Camille, there at Ben’s in the ‘60s. Cosby once held a national press conference at Ben’s Chili Bowl to celebrate his number one rated show “The Cosby Show.” Ali said they used to overnight orders to Cosby on dry ice. Cosby asked Ali in September 2010 to be the one to present him to the United States Navy Memorial Foundation where he received the Lone Sailor Award. Cosby volunteered to record a voice message for customers. When they called and were put on hold, they would hear him talk about Ben’s Chili Bowl.

“Isn’t that special. He truly shares his humanity. He does very special things for people,” Ali said.

The Alis have done a special thing for D.C. It all began when Ali and her late husband, Ben Ali, opened their doors in 1958 at 1213 U St. It was built in 1910 and was the Minnehaha Theatre, a silent movie house. One of D.C.’s first black police detectives, Harry Beckley, turned it into a pool hall and the Alis bought the building from him.

“This was a very prominent, but segregated community. U Street was the heart of entertainment. There were three theatres along this strip,” Ali said.

It was known as “Black Broadway.” People such as Nat King Cole and others were known to “hang out” at Ben’s Chili Bowl after performing at the Lincoln Theatre next door.

But it suffered hard times as well. In 1968, when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, riots plagued the city and Ben’s Chili Bowl, known to locals as “the little hot dog stand,” became a place of refuge for police officers, city officials and advocates.

“It was a place where they could congregate and talk about how to stop the violence,” Ali said.

Most of the city shut down after King’s assassination. “We were the only restaurant allowed to stay open after curfew…the neighborhood deteriorated for the next 25 years,” Ali said.

She said she felt through it all, people supported their restaurant.

“There was a strong sense of community,” Ali said.

She was proud to report that no one ever broke into Ben’s Chili Bowl during a time when drugs took over the streets.

From 1987 to 1991, the restaurant went through more difficult times when the Metro’s Green Line underwent construction and U Street closed. Ali’s three sons were in college. Ben Ali felt it was a waste of time for the boys to work there, but Virginia Ali and one other employee, who has been there for 34 years, stayed and fed the regulars.

“It was hard times. Not even a single car went down this street. It was completely torn up,” Ali said.

But they continued to stay open.

Ben’s Chili Bowl has received national media attention and a lot of recognition over the years. Ali and her husband were cruising in the Mediterranean in 2009 when they heard on TV that the D.C. mayor was going to talk live and they wanted to hear what he had to say. The next thing they saw was their restaurant with then President-elect Obama getting a half-smoke hot dog just 10 days before his inauguration.

Ben’s Chili Bowl has also been a movie set for “State of Play” with Russell Crowe and “The Pelican Brief.” It has been featured in several TV shows such as Oprah, CNN, the Today Show, Good Morning America and the Food Network. Ali and her husband were inducted into the D.C. Hall of Fame in May 2001. They also received the key to the city by Mayor Adrian Fenty in 2008.

Ali shared some of the favorite quotes she’s heard through out the years about Ben’s Chili Bowl. Since it’s open until 4:00 a.m. on the weekends, people want a place to eat after dancing and drinking so people would say, “Sober up with a chili dog!”

“We had TV ads with slogans such as, ‘The chili that will make your hot dog bark,’” Ali said.

They no longer have ads. It’s mostly word of mouth now. Ali said she’s heard people say to those running for office, “If you haven’t sat in the corner of the front of the restaurant at Ben’s with the locals then you’re not really running for office.” It truly has become a local hot spot as well as a family business.

All three sons and two daughters-in-law are involved at Ben’s Chili Bowl. One son and his wife have opened up a restaurant next door that’s called, “Ben’s Next Door.” It has a more extensive menu. There is also a gift shop upstairs and an on-line store: www.benschilibowl.com where people can order chili, half smokes, T-shirts and hats. Ben’s Chili Bowl also has a place in the Washington Nationals baseball stadium. The alley adjacent to Ben’s was named, “Ben Ali Way” by city council member Jim Graham in 1999 and is being painted with a mural.

Ali pointed to the outline on the wall of her and Ben, who were married for 51 years, “I didn’t know it was going to be THAT big. Sometimes I look around and think, how did this happen,” Ali said.