Shobi’s Table is a foodtruck that is also a ministry. It is a pay-as-you-can food truck that creates and serves from-scratch, delicious, nutritious meals rescued food from Twin Cities Food Justice to make meals such as burritos, wraps, sandwiches, salads, hot dishes like baked pastas, fried rice, and more. I’m talking with Deacon Kari Olsen, the Mission Developer and Head Chef of Shobi’s Table. We talk about this unique ministry, Kari’s call to ministry, and the connection between the communion table and our kitchen tables.
Suggested Reading and Listening:
Related Episodes:
A Journey of Faith and Food with Andrew Camp | Episode 183
Links:
Donate: Venmo- @churchandmainpod |TipTopJar- https://tiptopjar.com/electricparson
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/churchandmain
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/churchandmainpod/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@churchandmainpod
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@churchmainpodcast
Substack: https://churchandmain.substack.com/
Website: https://churchandmain.org/
[0:07] Music.
[0:35] We'll be right back. Thank you. Hello, and welcome to Church of Maine, a podcast for people interested in seeing where faith, politics, and culture intersect. I'm Dennis Sanders, your host. So, here in the Twin Cities, There is this food truck that is called the Egg Roll Queen. I think it makes some of the best egg rolls around.
[1:05] I love their pork egg rolls. You just get two of them. You have enough for a dinner. That's more than enough. I'm also a sucker for their dessert egg rolls. They actually have some that are stuffed with cream cheese and cherries. it's great. Now they once actually had a brick and mortar restaurant in addition to their food truck and it was incredibly popular. They were filled and they actually had live music. It was really nice. I mean, this was actually unfortunately pre-COVID and then COVID came and I think that really just kind of put the kibosh on that brick and mortar store. However, they still have that food truck. And of that, I am very, very happy. And every so often, my husband and I look around and usually they are in and around the St. Paul area. And we do stop in and get some egg rolls because they're great. Now, maybe for the last 10, 15 years or so, food trucks have actually become kind of trendy. This is, I think, an affordable way for an up-and-coming chef to get their foot in the door. It's kind of like they can start with a food truck and then maybe move on to a brick-and-mortar place.
[2:29] This is kind of a new way of kind of starting into the restaurant industry, but can a food truck be more than just a place to get good food or for a chef to ply their trade? Could a food truck also be a vehicle for outreach ministry?
[2:51] Well, Showbiz Table here in the Twin Cities is a food truck that also happens to be a ministry supported by the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It's a pay-as-you-go food truck that creates and serves food from scratch. They're delicious, nutritious meals, and they're rescued. It's rescue food from a group called Twin Cities Food Justice. And their menu is quite varied. They make things such as burritos and wraps and sandwiches, salads, hot dishes, and baked pastas, fried rice, and other things. And as I said, it's a pay-as-you-go food truck. And so it gets people from all walks of life that come to get meals from the food truck. And so today I'm going to talk with Deacon Kari Olson. She is the mission developer and head chef of Showbiz Table. And so we talk about this unique ministry, Kari's own call to ministry,
[4:04] and about the connection between the communion table and our own kitchen tables. So join me as I talk with Kari Olson.
[4:14] Music.
[4:33] All right. Well, thanks so much for joining me this afternoon. Yeah, absolutely. It's a pleasure to be here. Well, I wanted to start off just kind of to learn a little bit about you and your background, especially religious upbringing. I know being here in Minnesota, in the land of Lutherans, I can understand that. But I think for people who are not living in Minnesota, just kind of understand your background and the road that led you to Showbiz Table. Yeah, absolutely. Well, I'm not from Minnesota, even though it's funny, a lot of people would think I was from Minnesota before I even lived here. I'm not exactly sure why but i think the accent maybe i don't know but um i'm originally from washington state i'm from a small town called pullman it's on the east side so not seattle but pullman and um well gosh my so my church history is i grew up in the evangelical free church um until i was about 10 uh and then my parents um switched over to a missouri synod Lutheran Church. So that was my first introduction to the Lutheran world. And my friends were going to the Presbyterian Church right across the street, so I would actually dabble in both.
[6:01] And those were really good formative years for me.
[6:07] There was a lot of good preaching. There was a lot of just like things that really tugged at my heart about what it meant to be a Christian. And that's where I learned the liturgy. So I'm always grateful for that. In high school, I experienced kind of a first tug into ministry. And I remember telling my brother that I was interested in ministry. And he was the first one to tell me about the verse in 2 Timothy about that women can't be pastors, basically. And that was a real throw for me, I'll be honest. I've had enough time from it now that I really understand where my brother was coming from. I do, actually. I have a lot of grace for that. But it still really threw me because he was a mentor in my life. He was my big brother who was... Well, he's eight and a half years older than I am. And, um, Yeah, so I kind of put it on the back burner because I trusted him. And I still do. I'll be honest. I still do.
[7:19] And then I went off into college and I tried everything under the sun I could, at least in the Christian sphere. Um, I remember like thinking like, oh, you like liturgy too much. So you need to go to all of these like praise and worship churches, which I don't know where that came from, but, um, but I did. And, uh, it was funny because where I really landed in college was an Episcopalian church. And I just ate up all of the smells and bells. They were like high church to the max.
[7:54] Um and it was just like my body could experience god and i i love that because um like i'm i'm a body type like i don't know if you have ever talked about the enneagram on your program but i'm a nine and so i experience the world primarily through my body and so that was just a real awakening for me and i loved that um but when i graduated i you know i spent a few more years in that church. And then I ended up going to Holden Village, which is an ELCA-related retreat center in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State.
[8:33] And there was my first touch with the ELCA. And it just started to fit. And that was where my call that I had kind of put on the back burner was put back on the front burner. And I started to really understand my call back into like really specific ministry. And my job life had been working in kitchens. And so I would either be working in a kitchen or I would be at church. And those two started to come together in so many ways. And yet again, my body was so helpful in understanding God's love made really tangible in the feeding of people. And so that's kind of where I was called into ministry and how I got there through many veins of church. Yeah.
[9:27] So how would you—and.
[9:33] How would you describe how Showbiz Table came to be? I know you are a deacon in the ALCA.
[9:43] And Showbiz Table is kind of interesting because it's almost, at least in the language of my tradition, almost kind of considered a new church or a new faith community in a kind of a non-traditional way. So how would you kind of describe that?
[10:02] Yeah. Well, is it okay if I give kind of the whole story of Showbiz Table? It kind of makes more sense to the whole story. Go right ahead. Yep. Yeah. So, Showbiz Table has actually been around much longer than I've been with it.
[10:15] It started like 12, 13 years ago. I can't quite remember exactly when, but at a church on the east side of St. Paul. and there was an intern there who was heavily involved with their Wednesday night happenings and it was called the wellness center and they had so many beautiful things for people who were living on the edge it wasn't just like a meal program it would be like there there would be nurses there for foot care and there would be legal advice and there would be just be, all of these different things that people could come and receive free resources, And this intern noticed that there was this need for a congregation to build from within that. And by congregation, I mean worshiping community. There was starting to be a group of people who could benefit from having a congregation of people who experienced the same life that they had, a life like on the margins.
[11:14] And, um, so he dreamed it up as kind of like a new, um, a new church start. And, um, so they, they did and, um, they always gathered around meal. Um, you know, that was just kind of what they did. And, um, they began to imagine life together. And one of the things that they thought about was how could we make, um, uh, our ministry mobile? Because so many of us had experienced mobile lives. And um so they did and long story short by the grace of god um they met up with another ministry who was actually a food truck ministry downtown saint paul and at first they borrowed the truck for one day a week and then um that ministry had to fold because of you know life happens right And when it folded, they gave the immense gift of that truck to Showbiz Table. They just gave it. So that was a huge gift and what a wonderful thing. Um and i'll say that with you know with much gift also comes great responsibility, and um there was not quite the infrastructure at that time to financially sustain this little tiny um congregation and as well as like the logistics of a food truck ministry.
[12:42] Um so in 2017 it was put on pause um with kind of like the help of like broader church leadership. And in 2018, I had been an intern at a church right where the Senate office was. And so they knew about me and I was pretty vocal about wanting to do food-based ministry. And for some reason they saw in me someone who could take this on. And I still I kind of want to ask them, like, are you sure that was supposed to be me? Like, what did you see in me? But now I'm like, no, I can see some things about, like, yeah, I'm really glad they did. So they asked me to go to mission development training, which is how the ELCA starts new congregations, starts new ministries. And I'll be honest, when they first asked, I said, no, thank you. That sounds terrifying.
[13:45] But the director for Evangelical Mission, Justin Grimm, he said, I really think you should try it. And I said, okay, fine. So I went. And one of the great things that I did there was meet with someone from within the homeless and justice network of the ELCA. And she was starting a pay-as-you-can cafe out in Pennsylvania. And so she introduced me to this whole network called One World Everybody Eats.
[14:17] And I mean, it was like exactly what I needed to hear. And so they have this whole like, here's a booklet on how to start a cafe and here's how to make it sustainable. And since the directive that I had been given from the Synod was, here's a food truck, find a sustainable way to carry forward this ministry. I said, okay, I think this is it. And so that's what we've done. So we turned it in from the, it used to be called the food truck church. And its primary thing was more like they gave out these little calzones, but then they had a little church service afterwards. And then we turned it into more of a, you know, really meal centered ministry. And so we would set out tables and chairs and really try to build community that way by, um, inviting people to first be, um, you know, respected and given a dignified meal that was really going to feed them in body, in their body, but also give them an experience where they could be fed in soul by being respected, um, by, you know, learning their names and making space to hear their stories.
[15:31] Um yeah so over the last six years we've grown from having uh serving uh twice a month to now we serve four days a week um and uh this year has just gone gangbusters so yeah it's been it's been a journey and it's been a good journey so one of the things that i found interesting was that the character, the name of Showbiz Table is a person in the Bible, one that showed hospitality to David in the Hebrew Scripture. And how it's described, especially on your website, is that that was kind of an act of hospitality. And I think normally we may tend to think of hospitality as something that's being nice and welcoming, but it's seen at least from what you're gathering that this is something that is very much an important spiritual value and a spiritual practice. How do you see that lived out in Shobi's Table, and how do you think you're living out what Shobi in the Bible practiced? Oh, yeah. So, I'm glad you know your scriptures. Either that or you've been to one of my presentations. Hardly anybody knows who Shobby's is.
[16:53] So one of the unique things about the story of Shobby is that, It's really in a really messy part of King David's life.
[17:03] So King David is running for his own life from his own son, Absalom, who is out to kill him. And so he's hiding in the wilderness with his men. And it is in that moment that out of nowhere, Shobi just pops up with two of his friends and brings this elaborate feast. Um and so for me that translates to really being present to the natural messiness of people's lives.
[17:30] Um i was just um sharing with my staff the other day you know showbiz is pretty weird and if it ever gets too normal then we're doing something wrong um and i i think like that's, we we end up sharing a table with a lot of people whose lives are you know they're marginalized They're really experiencing the stress of not having enough in one way or another. And that can really bring up a lot of internal discomfort that comes out in different ways, you know. So, you know, we might have folks in line who are like, you know, lots of people are super grateful and wonderful. And we may also have some people who are really experiencing the toughness of what life can throw at them. And so we get the privilege of giving them hospitality in that moment. And it's hard work, but it is a spiritual practice to be able to root yourself in the belovedness of God so that in the messiest of messiness, you can give a moment where you are connecting with them, with whoever is in line. Look them in the eye. Say, what's your name? Can I give you some food? And give them a moment of dignity.
[18:59] And like that is that is seeing jesus like that that is seeing jesus right there, and you know so much of that comes from a an ability to root yourself in knowing, um that you are god's beloved you know first and foremost and from there can just like be the most amazing, love that can just spread. Yeah. Yeah. And kind of related to that is, and going back to, you talked earlier about working at Holden Village in Washington State. And it seems like that there, there was like a connection between, what you were doing kind of in a kitchen table and, and the communion table. And I read this from your website, so that's where I got that from, but I was fascinated by that. And I would love to hear what is that? Where do you see that connection and how do you see it working out in show beast table on a, you know, when you're out there and, and serving people. Yeah, absolutely. No, I love this question. And I think where I'll start is actually when I first started seminary, I started to become a pastor. I was on the pastor track.
[20:29] And as time went along, I started to understand like, oh, no, this is not the best fit for me. And the more I heard about becoming a deacon, the more it made sense for me to understand my work at the table as service. Because so much of my understanding before had been like, I am called to the communion table, and so I must do the sacrament of communion.
[20:51] But as I was journeying through this, I started to really understand, and I had understood this before, especially at Holden Village, that every time I stepped up to a kitchen counter to make bread, to chop vegetables, even to step into the dishroom to wash dishes, that was an extension of the communion table because it was how the elements got there. And it was this invitation into co-creation with God to see that the connection, like the communion table's life goes beyond the little, you know, if you're a wafer church or you're like a chunk of bread church, it goes beyond those because those came from somewhere. And they go all the way back to coming from God, who created this magnificent earth, who from that magnificent earth created a space where seeds and animals can come forth and be co-created into a meal, a meal. And sometimes we lose it when we think of communion as just bread and wine. But when we think about it as the power that can spread into every meal that we have, we see that God has chosen something so tangible to love us with. God has chosen something.
[22:19] This sandwich to love you with. And, you know, sometimes we lose like the power of what it means to be like loved by God. But sometimes when we give ourself enough time to let it sink in, that our God chose us to like, not just give us food, like out of thin air. I mean, like, well, manna, manna was the different, a different thing, but like something that we can have, a participation in, that we can chop vegetables with, that we can knead bread dough, that we can make a soup with, that we get to co-create with that, that is so beautiful, that God invites us into that. So I just, oh, I get chills thinking about it. So it's not, I mean, it sounds like, you know, always it's trying to extend, And really extend the communion table beyond just the event itself, but into every aspect of our lives, of understanding God's love, and in some ways that also that call to service as well.
[23:29] Yeah, absolutely. And I mean, it's even the act of sharing the table. And there's just so many elements of it of, you know, like, you know, I can certainly create a dinner for my friends, but if I don't acknowledge that I wasn't the only one who was part of that, the creation of that, you know, that God provided so many parts of it, but that other farmers, other people who delivered, who sold it, that kind of thing. But then also sharing that table. Yeah.
[24:01] It becomes how we understand that we need each other to know God.
[24:10] So one kind of basic question I thought of asking is simply, why a food truck? It's a unique way of doing it. I think I've heard of other ideas of pay-as-you-go or even just kind of no charge that are usually people come to a place. But this is, at least for me, it sounds very unique. And so I'm kind of curious, and I know that you came in later, but what kind of is the benefit of having the food truck? Yeah. Well, you know, I mean, I was given a food truck. I didn't decide on it. So it's like taking me a little bit of time to understand what the gift of it is. Um, but I, I think one of the main gifts is that we, so logistically we can park wherever a car parks, which means we can go wherever people are. Um, well, not necessarily, you know, like anywhere, but in general and, um, that mobility really, um, gives us a unique opportunity to be, um, Um.
[25:24] To, to go close, I would say. Um, so we park, we park in parking lots. Um, we park in one very close to the state Capitol. Uh, we park in one, um, kind of in a, in a neighborhood. We park at, um, a very busy, um, kind of junction of two streets where there's like lots of laundromats and a thrift store and gas station. And then we also park at like the busiest intersection in St. Paul, which is Snellingen University. And we're at a big stadium parking lot there. And...
[26:06] You know, I don't know, maybe there are better locations for us, but, you know, we can kind of set up and then take down. We don't have to. It's different than maintaining a building. Like, certainly you still have to maintain the infrastructure of a vehicle, but we get to go close to where the people are and then leave. And so it just allows kind of a different approach to ministry. We're um we also really dedicate ourselves to staying in one spot and we do that because we know a lot of people don't necessarily have the means to you know get online and follow where the food truck is going um you know people have suggested that before like why don't you change up your locations more but we want to make sure that people know where we are we have had to change up locations but um yeah having the food truck means that we can have steady locations but we don't have to maintain the building of that location you know and so we get to have four locations with one tiny little building on wheels so that's that's helpful we don't um Um.
[27:22] Uh, we don't, uh, go all year round. Um, and that's partially because of weather. And so in, you know, in the winter time when we're serving, we have been finding indoor locations. Um, but that also allows us to build partnerships, you know, with other places. So yeah. I mean, the gift of mobility is real. So, yeah. Yeah.
[27:50] And what are the kind of, how would you, I mean, we've kind of talked a little bit about a lot of the people you would say are kind of from more marginalized backgrounds. I mean, how would you describe where are the people who are your, I would say, normal people who come to the food truck? I don't know if customers is the right word, but people who come and are part of the community. Yeah, community is the right word. Yeah, anyone who's ever been to lunch, anyone who's ever had any touch with Showbiz Table, we consider part of our community. Our lunch community is very diverse, particularly socially and economically and also ethnically. Um we have quite a few um immigrants in our neighborhoods we have the real privilege to you know do ministry where like we not might not always have um we don't might not always speak their language so we get to understand the challenges of building relationships without, without a whole lot of English.
[29:00] Music.
[29:01] Yeah. But, you know, I, I always say showbiz table is not just a meal program for poor people. So it's not just meant to be this kind of traditional model of like the people who have volunteer and serve the people who have not. Um so we we really try to articulate as much as we can get the message out there that the that showbiz table is we need everyone at the table it's the only way a pay as you can cafe is going to work um and so um, While we do have the privilege and joy of like many neighbors at our table are living a pretty marginalized life, we also have community members who are regulars who just come because they can, you know. And, you know, sometimes that really requires another spiritual practice of coming to a place that might feel uncomfortable at first. But then you know you grow and you learn like how to sit in something that's just a little uncomfortable and then it becomes comfortable so, um like i said we're a weird table and we hope to keep it weird.
[30:24] Well and this would probably would not be shocking that of course the first table was also probably a little strange as well. Um, in the communion table. Yeah, I think so.
[30:38] So what are some, some thoughts and hopes and dreams as you're moving forward? Um, that, you know, this has been going on for a while. Um, what are plans that you have or hopes that you have to see, um, showbiz table going? Yeah. Yeah. Well, I'll give kind of two strains for that. Um, You know, I love dreaming big, and we've considered having a brick-and-mortar cafe. We've also considered pursuing a second truck and being able to add another four sites. Yeah. We're not at the phase of like really being able to put feet forward towards that yet. It's more of a dreaming phase. But that, you know, like I think this could really go in a lot of directions. I also think it's a great model. And I think another way of growth for us could be satellite sites to invite places that are interested in this kind of ministry to, if they have a kitchen or if they have some means of copying this, is there a way we could umbrella together to help fund it?
[31:52] Where that you know they provide a lot of the logistics and the volunteers but you know we we fundraise all together um that kind of thing um so there's you know that kind of growth um, um and then there's also um spiritual growth so one of the things that we're looking into for the coming year or so, is to explore another meal that would be added that would be like a meal plus prayer.
[32:23] You know, we might call it supper church. I'm not exactly sure what we're going to call it yet. I don't think it's going to be particularly liturgical, but the intent is to provide spiritual care for those in our community who really need it and who are not comfortable being in a traditional church setting yet um so it would not be traditional church but it would be, space created to care for the spiritual lives of anyone who needed to come, um so there's that like that's the showbiz growth right that's very exciting um but more recently i feel a little bit more aware of how showbiz can help um also grow kind of like what it means to, be new ministry in the ELCA. So we've recently been given a new category called Synodically Authorized Outreach Missions, our ministries. And so we're no longer within lumped together with church starts because we are church, but we're not a church.
[33:35] And I just got to participate in the new training for this program and I'm really excited about how the church is starting to be more imaginative about what kind of ministry we can support to see um like as you know like touching the people's lives who might not even ever think to set foot in an ELCA church or really any protestant church or maybe even any sunday-based church um Um.
[34:06] But I'm excited about how Showbiz Table can help model what it means to be church in the world. Yeah. That kind of sounds very cool to hear that they are considering kind of a new type of outreach ministry. Because there are things that are out there that aren't necessarily congregations in the traditional sense, but they are doing church. It's just been a very different kind of way that that is great to see that there is some support for that kind of more non-traditional model of, you know, of doing mission out there. Yeah. Yeah. I'm really excited about it. Yeah. I'm kind of curious, has there been or have there been even within the ELCA or even outside other denominations or other within the ELCA, other synods that have said this is something, maybe not necessarily to copy it exactly, but that can see it as an idea of other ways of how they could do food ministry? Do you mean are there other food truck ministries out there? Well, it's actually more that have there been people who've come to you to say, we're interested in doing something like this. Yeah.
[35:33] Yes, absolutely there have. And thankfully, it has actually gone outside of the bounds of the ELCA. Like, I'm all like, ELCA is great. Yay, ELCA. And I'm also excited about understanding like all the ways of church. Um so yeah um some people have been um interested and you know often it'll be like someone like can you bring the truck to our site and i say i want to but i don't have the like um infrastructure yet to be able to just like send the truck on a regular basis somewhere else right now, but i know there is energy around it which is why i kind of we started thinking about the satellite program is there a way that we could like help fundraise all together but that you would provide you know the logistics and right now i think a lot of people are looking for the logistics to be provided so when i get to a place where i can send out more logistics man i'm i'm there um yeah.
[36:36] Well, if people want to know a little bit more about Showbiz Table and maybe how they can support you or in various ways, where should they go? Yeah, absolutely. Well, always our website. There's lots of good information there.
[36:54] So really the best way to get to know us is to come to lunch. Always, always, always. You are always invited. You are always welcome. Um, um, our lunch schedule is posted on our website, so please come. Um, you're always, everyone is always welcome to also volunteer. Uh, there's spaces in the kitchen, um, and at the food truck. So we're really trying to build up our volunteer base and we invite folks into that. Um, and then just following us, uh, really on like social media and signing up for our newsletter to keep in the know. Um, and I'll always say, of course, people are invited to donate. We rely on donations in order to operate. We'll never be like a Sunday-based congregation that can rely on pledges. You look a lot more like a nonprofit, which requires donations. So I invite folks who are listening to give, and you can do all of that on our website. So come to lunch, come volunteer, and give. And then, of course, we covet your prayers. All right.
[38:00] Well, Carrie, thank you so much for taking the time to chat. This has been, I think, very great. It's wonderful to hear more about this ministry. I personally have kind of seen it and know about it kind of tangentially, but it's great to hear the story. And yeah, you'll probably see me out at one of the sites because I like to eat. Absolutely.
[38:27] Marvelous. Well, I can't wait to see you there. Okay. Thank you.
[38:31] Music.
[39:01] So, I'm curious what you thought about the conversation. I'm also kind of curious to know if there are any other similar ministries out there like this, like Showbiz Table. I'm really curious to see kind of that type of outreach ministry using food, because I think that those are, there's something interesting about those type of ministries to me. And, you know, if you have, if you know of something like that, or if you are someone that's behind something like that, feel free to send me an email. You can send it to churchinme at substack.com, because I'd like to talk to you. Maybe that could be a future episode.
[39:45] I'd have put links in the show notes for Showbiz Table, its website, for you. And also there are some related episodes that you may want to listen to that will be helpful. So if you want to learn more about this podcast and listen to past episodes or even donate, check us out at churchinmain.org. I also hope that you'll consider visiting churchinmain.substack.com. There are some related articles. I've put in a few articles there recently about politics, especially, especially as we are coming into the last few weeks of this election. So, please check that out as well. And like I said, again, that is at churchinmain.substack.com for the articles. I hope that you will consider subscribing to the podcast on your favorite podcast app. And I also hope that you will consider leaving a review. That does help others find this podcast. So that's it for this episode of Church in Maine. Thank you so much for listening. I'm Dennis Sanders, your host. Take care, Godspeed, and I will see you very soon.
[40:58] Music.
Related Episodes
Sociology in the Age of Trump with Jesse Smith | Episode 213
What sociology gets right and wrong about Trump voters.
About the Purple Church Initiative with Beth Crissman | Episode 212
How Methodists are trying to reach across the political aisle.
Discovering Dwelling in the Word with Tessa Pinkstaff | Episode 211
Revitalize your congregation by reading the same Bible passage over and over again.
