![]() Hummus already looms large on American snack tables, replacing ranch dressing as a healthier, cut-vegetable accompaniment. High in protein, dietary fiber and essential amino acids, pulses can play an even larger role in diets focused on reducing meat consumption. Dietary Guidelines suggest Americans eat 1 ½ cups of cooked pulses per week, McGreevy notes. The chickpea invasion has gone beyond the dip aisle, too, with crunchy roasted versions from companies like Hippeas and The Good Bean competing with potato chips as a healthful alternative. ![]() A Sabra production plant in Chesterfield County, Va., where the company also has encouraged more farmers to grow chickpeas, was expanded in 2014 to produce more than 8,000 tons of hummus a month in anticipation of market growth. markets over the past decade and is still one of the sector's largest players. ![]() Sabra, a joint venture between Strauss Group and PepsiCo., has led hummus' parade into U.S. That's compared to just under $200 million in hummus sales a decade before and only $5 million in the mid-1990s, placing the popular dip among food retail's fastest-growing sectors. By last year, that number had swelled to 859,000 acres.Īmericans spent nearly $800 million on hummus from retail stores in 2018, McGreevy says. When Tim McGreevy started working in 1994 as the CEO of the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council and the American Pulse Association - a trade group that trumpets the power of chickpeas, lentils, dry peas and beans - the country was harvesting about 30,000 acres of chickpeas annually, primarily in the hilly Palouse agricultural region of Washington, Idaho and Oregon. But word was spreading that the chickpea could pull in more money per pound than other legumes, while reducing the need for chemical inputs compared with crops like wheat. "They're a very powerful plant."īailey planted his first few hundred acres of chickpeas a dozen years ago, after a retailer looking to sell more of the healthful legumes reached out to him on LinkedIn, making him a pioneer in Montana's grain-heavy Golden Triangle region. "These (chickpeas) are helping restore the grasslands of the West, which are this huge carbon sink," Wiseman says over a bowl of hummus topped with snap peas and Aleppo chili oil at his Chinatown location. Creating markets for such legumes - particularly those grown without chemicals such as desiccants used to dry chickpeas in the fields - is a growing interest for Wiseman. "It's awesome to see people who would probably eat meat every day come in here and be satisfied without it."įor Wiseman, the cherry on top of opening a second location this year is getting to buy more kabuli chickpeas from Bailey, whom he'll visit this summer during a road trip in Little Sesame's 1978 Volkswagen van. is slated for Thursday, April 19 at The Apollo (600 H Street NE), but it’s already sold out, reports Wiseman."We don't say it much, but 80% of the menu is always vegan," Wiseman says. A new blue retro-looking van is getting the team around on its collab dinner series. To spread the word about Little Sesame, the team is embarking on a road trip to host dinner collaborations with “some of our favorite restaurants around the country,” Nick Wiseman tells Eater. The menu will be strikingly similar to its first location, with hummus bowls, pita sandwiches, salads, sides, and desserts. A rendering is not yet available.Ĭo-owners Nick and David Wiseman, who also operate Whaley’s in Navy Yard and Hill Prince in the Atlas District, are partners with Israeli native Ronen Tenne on Little Sesame.Įdit Lab at Streetsense is charged with the design, and the team recently traveled to Israel for inspiration. Little Sesame’s new 1,400-square-foot location will be a 180 from the original window-less subterranean space, going for a sun-drenched and airy vibe. ![]() The tiny Middle Eastern shop originally sat a couple blocks north in Dupont Circle, inside the upscale Jewish deli DGS Delicatessen that shuttered in February. Fast-casual hummus eatery Little Sesame is getting a second life this spring, this time at 1828 L Street NW.
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