Food connects us. It transports us. It tells us a story about a person, a place, a time. It preserves culture. And, in a world that is often divided, food brings people together.
All of those elements are among the goals for Tables Across Borders, a pop-up dinner initiative founded by Kai Gardner-Mishlove in 2019 and carried on with the help of Chef Gregory Leon, Caitlin Cullen and Christie Melby-Gibbons.
Each pop-up dinner is hosted at a local restaurant. The events serve to showcase the home cooking of refugees from across the globe while also providing them with a tangible source of income.
The cuisine of Syria
Chef Gregory Leon will be hosting the first Tables Across Borders dinner of the year at Amilinda, 315 E. Wisconsin Ave.
The dinner will take place on Monday, Feb. 17 from 6:30 to 9 p.m. It will feature the cuisine of Syria in dishes created by Tahani Ghaziyah.
Tickets are $75 per person and can be purchased online. Since the pop-ups are staffed by volunteers (and all proceeds from the ticket price go to support the refugee family who cooks the meal) attendees are asked to consider a generous tip for staff.
What you need to know
The Tables Across Borders dinners recognize that refugee populations are not only displaced from their homes, but – due to how they are displaced and dispersed – they often stand in danger of suffering the loss of their foodways.
In turn, the dinners highlight traditional dishes from cuisines you’re unlikely to encounter in restaurants while offering guests the opportunity to connect with and learn more about cultures different from their own.
Since all proceeds from the dinners go directly to the cooks, the dinners also provide a source of income for families who are establishing new lives in Milwaukee.
Upcoming dinners
The Syrian dinner at Amilinda is just the first of a series of Tables Across Borders pop-ups to be held in 2025. Tickets for all dinners will be available online in the weeks preceding the event.
Monday, March 3
Cuisine: Afghan cuisine with Bahkt Mohammad
Location: Amilinda, 315 E. Wisconsin Ave.
Tickets will be available online at tinyurl.com/2yvwd8es
Monday, April 28
Ethiopian Cuisine with Chef Abebech
Tricklebee Cafe, 4424 W. North Ave.
Tickets will be available online at tinyurl.com/2yvwd8es
Additional events will be announced for the Madison area in the upcoming weeks. Questions can be directed to Kai Mishlove at kmishlove@jssmadison.org.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
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