Author Alexander Justice Moore’s New Expanded Edition Takes Readers Through 35 Years of Innovative Solutions in the Fight Against Hunger and Poverty at the Nation’s Leading Social Enterprise Nonprofit
Thirty-five years after renegade nightclub manager Robert Egger set out to turn the traditional soup kitchen model on its head, DC Central Kitchen has become one of America’s most acclaimed and emulated nonprofits. The new edition of The Food Fighters: A History of DC Central Kitchen, by Alexander Justice Moore has the answers to how this unlikely pioneer of food recovery, job training, and healthy school meals has beaten the odds on its way to serving 50 million meals.
“The book provides unprecedented insight into DC Central Kitchen’s many innovations, and no small number of its missteps and challenges through the years,” says Moore, who first joined DC Central Kitchen in 2006 as an undergraduate intern and currently serves as the organization’s Chief Development Officer. “The Food Fighters is an ideal resource for graduate and undergraduate courses on social enterprise and nonprofit management, a helpful tool for anyone looking to learn more about nonprofits, volunteerism, philanthropy, and food justice, and a bare-knuckled ‘bottom-up’ history of politics and policy in Washington, DC.”
The expanded second edition includes photographs, a revised introduction, and nearly 200 pages of new historical accounts detailing the Kitchen’s adventures from 2013 to 2024, events that included its foray into local food politics, its award-winning response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the development of its iconic new headquarters, the Klein Center for Jobs and Justice. Moore includes dozens of interviews with the organization’s leaders, front-line staff, and inspiring culinary students striving to overcome histories of incarceration, homelessness, addiction, and trauma. It also includes exclusive interviews with high-profile DC Central Kitchen supporters like humanitarian José Andrés, craigslist founder Craig Newmark, and celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn, who offer their unique perspectives on the national and historic importance of the organization and its mission.
Long-time DC Central Kitchen volunteer and former board member José Andrés states: “DC Central Kitchen has taught me a lesson that changed my life: that by harnessing the power of food to provide nourishment and dignity, we can change the world. The Food Fighters is a testament to that power, and its stories of breaking down walls and building communities will teach and inspire you, too.”
DC Central Kitchen CEO Mike Curtin Jr. agrees. “This story is incredible, because it is all true. And Alex is just the right person to tell it. He has painstakingly gathered the first-hand perspectives of so many courageous people who have worked so hard for 35 years to offer a different type of solution to hunger: one that actually works. Beyond that, Alex brings his own deep knowledge of nonprofit leadership, purposeful fundraising, and effective policy advocacy, sharing insights and useful guidance that will benefit and entertain any reader.”
In addition to serving as DC Central Kitchen’s long-time Chief Development Officer, Moore is an inaugural member of the DC Food Policy Council and one of Washington Business Journal’s 40 Under 40.
The book is available now in paperback, hardcover, and e-book formats via book publisher iUniverse, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other resellers. Copies can also be purchased at all three DC Central Kitchen Cafe locations and an audiobook version will be released later this year.
The official launch party for The Food Fighters will take place at 5:30pm on Tuesday, August 13 at DC Central Kitchen’s Center for Jobs and Justice (2121 First Street SW, Washington, DC). Tickets are on sale now. To learn more or book a talk from the author, email events@dccentralkitchen.org.
ABOUT ALEXANDER JUSTICE MOORE
Alexander Justice Moore joined DC Central Kitchen as an undergraduate grant writing intern in 2006 and was named its Chief Development Officer in 2014. He was appointed to the inaugural DC Food Policy Council in 2016, named one of Washington Business Journal’s 40 under 40 in 2022, and featured by the Smithsonian Institution’s Anacostia Community Museum as one of 12 local changemakers in its 2021 ‘Food for the People’ exhibition. He has appeared in numerous publications and media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Civil Eats, Food Tank, AgriPulse, Modern Luxury, Buzzfeed, and National Public Radio. Moore earned degrees from Ithaca College and Georgetown University before publishing the first edition of The Food Fighters in 2014.
ABOUT DC CENTRAL KITCHEN
DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) is an iconic nonprofit and social enterprise that combats hunger and poverty through job training and job creation. Our approach provides hands-on culinary job training while creating living-wage jobs and bringing nutritious, dignified food where it is most needed in our city. We serve scratch-cooked farm-to-school meals in DC schools; deliver fresh, affordable produce to corner stores in neighborhoods without supermarkets; provide delicious catering; and operate fast-casual cafes that also provide on-the-job training. To learn more, visit dccentralkitchen.org or follow @dccentralkitchen on Instagram and @dcck on X.