SHOMPA KABIR, FLAVOR QUEEN OF KENSINGTON

Shompa Kabir is a Bengali-American woman from Brooklyn who is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of We’re Eating, an online platform dedicated to underrepresented voices in food media. Shompa is also a segment producer for Peloton Studios, and a stand-up comedian! We got together to talk about her passion for cooking, the Bengali farmer in all of us, having a curfew in college, her strange internship at Facebook, and so much more. She made us a chopped cheese mac n’ cheese dish for the holidays, and we definitely had to take a nap after. I hate to brag, but she’s also my friend!

SHOMPA AT HOME. PHOTOGRAPH BY ASYA STEPNOVA

AFSANA: Hi Shompa!  Tell us about “We’re Eating”.

SHOMPA: We’re Eating is a digital platform that shares recipes, food related stories, small businesses and influencers within the food space that highlights POC, LGBTQ+, and other people who feel underrepresented within the food space.

A: What inspired you to start the site?

S: What inspired me is simply my love of food and cooking. It’s something I’ve always been involved in, but felt like I wasn’t being seen. I was so tired of seeing the food influencers that got so much attention within this space that didn’t have diversity. I didn’t want people of color to feel like the minority in food media anymore. There can’t be progression without someone taking a step to start changing things, even if it’s a tiny step. Also, just reflecting on my professional career, a lot of digital publications or companies look for experience, and I wanted this to be a platform for students or people in need of media experience to put on their resume.

A: So, what did you do today?

S: I came home from work and defrosted chicken for a recipe tonight. I made blackened chicken tenders with a pepper cream sauce. I schedule out my recipes for the week. Recipes that don’t take very long, I do on the weekdays. I made the seasonings for the chicken and let it marinate, and while it was doing that I went and did my workout.

A: So you worked a full day, came home, cooked a recipe for the site, and worked out? Kind of heroic.

S: Yeah, I like to make use of my time.

A: Were you always like that? 

S: Always. People in high school would make fun of me because I would go straight home and do my homework right away. I just like getting things out of the way. 

A: Did you get that from your parents?

S: Nope, it’s just me. I love getting stuff done.

A: And you’re not on Adderall?

S: (laughing) No.

A: What college did you go to?

S: Brooklyn college.

A: CUNY! Me too. Did you want to go there specifically?

S: Definitely not. I didn’t want to go there because I went to high school a couple blocks away - why would I want to stay in the same school in the same area? But my parents didn’t let me go away for college.

A: Wait, your PARENTS didn’t let you go out of the city? Cause they’re Bengali, right? 

S: Yup. Exactly

A: Same situation with my parents. I didn’t know this happened to you too! 

S: They tried to bribe me like, if you stay, we’ll get you a car. And obviously, I said yes to that. So I stayed. It was my first car ever, and it was super shitty, but it was a car.

A: Have you noticed that our parents give us things at a price of some kind? When I talk to my friends that aren’t brown, they’re like yeah I went to college out of state, and my parents got me a car just for getting into college. 

S: Yup. And you know what, they wouldn’t even let me apply out of NYC.

A: Same. same. Ok cool, we’re getting into some trauma right here. My parents were like don’t even bother trying to go to school out of the city, let alone out of state. 

S: Right, same with mine. I went to Brooklyn college because I didn’t get into Baruch.  I knew ahead of time I wanted to be in business/marketing.

A: This makes a lot of sense with your personality, actually. So you went to Brooklyn College, as a business major. Were you working?

S: When I was a senior in high school, I got a job at a brand new vegan restaurant in my neighborhood. I basically did everything in the restaurant, from serving food to cooking to packing up orders because the store was super tiny and only fit a couple of people. That was my first food-based job. I had always wanted to work in a restaurant or bakery. I hate folding clothes, so I never wanted to work in retail. I didn’t like kids so I didn’t want to be an after-school counselor. Food was what I was interested in. 

A: What was your favorite thing to do at the restaurant?

S: It’s weird but my favorite thing to do was serve the food out of the buffet. I learned so many recipes there. It was a vegan restaurant and this was way before veganism blew up in the culture, so a lot of people didn’t know what it was. It was so cool to learn about vegan cooking there. It was a restaurant run by a Jamaican family, so it was vegan Jamaican cooking. I learned a lot of different recipes and some of them I still make today. I’m still in contact with my boss there - he’s just so cool. I was there from the beginning of their restaurant until their very last day open. The only reason I got another job after that is because they went out of business. I loved that job. I loved my boss and my co-workers. I love that it was in my neighborhood, so I could easily work late nights. My parents knew where it was so they were cool with my bosses, it was a very community-based thing. I really enjoyed that environment. 

A: It’s such a shame that it closed. It sounds like a great place. They were ahead of their time. Plant-based is all the rage now. What other jobs or internships have you done? 

S: So through that job, I got my first internship. I got in contact with someone through the restaurant that does work for our community and became his assistant. Then I found a group that helped POC students get media internships. It required mad essays and phone interviews and stuff but I was like whatever, I can do this. So I sat at home and did the application, I got into the program and they hooked me up with my first media internship at A&E Networks. After that, I did an internship every summer until I graduated. No one told me to, but something in me just knew that this was the only way I could get enough experience and build some connections. During the school year, I worked at two more bakeries. I worked at a cake boutique and learned about baking. I was also going to college and running clubs (in college) too. It was more front-of-house stuff at the bakery, but honestly, as long as I’m around things, I pick up a lot and learn from just observing what other people do. I picked up a few skills just from observing. When I got my internship at Facebook, I had to quit my bakery job. 

A: What did you do at Facebook?

S: I was some client marketing intern…I don't know. That shit was such a blur to me. It wasn’t fulfilling work. My team made it a shitty experience for me. I did not like my team. They never prioritized what I wanted to learn about. They never gave me the one-on-one time I deserved. There was only one other person of color on the team- who was also new. I kind of felt jealous because other people really enjoyed their teams and I was like damn, my team does not give a shit about me. Their reasoning at the end of the internship was that I should have sought them out and wasn’t doing enough but I was like nah. It wasn’t the vibe.

A: It’s crazy that we’re always blamed for not doing enough when they don’t give us the time of day or opportunity to do so. No one can say that you didn’t try enough. You did full-time classes, ran your own school clubs, and worked. I know you’re about it.

S: I saw through the bullshit. So because I didn't like the vibe, I couldn't put in all my effort. and I  told them straight up, this isn’t for me at the end of my internship. My boss really took it the wrong way and told me anything I wanted I needed to put in work for. And yeah, I get that a hundred percent, but I didn’t connect with my team. And when you don’t connect with the people you're around, you're not going to enjoy or be motivated enough to do work. 

A: Interesting that your boss got so defensive instead of simply asking you hey, what can we do for you? How can I help you find inspiration or motivation with our team? Tell us why you don’t feel comfortable. When you voice your opinion as a woman of color in the workplace, I feel like they always take it as an attack. 

S: Yeah, and I definitely think it could not happen now. This was in 2017. 

A: Right, people are trying to be more “diverse” and inclusive now.

S: There's no way, I don't think, that a boss could say that to me now. She was not a great manager, it is what it is. After that, I got a job at a high-end croissant bakery on the LES and that was so fun. I was in a unique space.

A: POC, women, and anyone without family money and connections are always told to put in the work and break through the barriers to achieve a level of “success”. They tell us to do internships, meet people. but sometimes when you finally get the chance for an internship with a company as big as Facebook, they don’t even treat you well.

S: Yeah it was weird. I was the only non-Ivy league person there and I couldn't connect with them. 

A: Ivy league kids treat CUNY kids differently. 

S: Definitely. For me, I don’t notice it unless it's directly in my face. I'm in my own world. I never walked into Facebook like, wow I can’t wait to make friends today. And the same thing when I was at NBC. I don’t need confirmation at a work setting to feel valued in my personal life.  My life is in NYC already. I’m from here. I already got people I fuck with. I have my friends for that. I have my neighborhood and community. I don't need to be an ass-kisser. I've met so many people at jobs that were just ass kissers and I know that comes from a self need of needing to be wanted. I have never needed that. This job at Peloton is different because I actually have the most friends I have ever made at work because they're just so chill.

A: So what happened after Facebook?

S: I worked at the bakery. I would've deadass been a baker but they were like we have to be in at 4 am and back then that was a dub. There was no way I was gonna take the train at 4 am and then go to school. So after graduation, I got into the NBC Page Program. That was a full-time job. That's where I got my core production experience because I was working on actual sets and studios and control rooms. I'm a big believer that everything you do in life prepares you for the next step, so all my internships led me to the NBC program. Because that shit’s mad competitive.

A: Absolutely, I was just going to ask you about that because the acceptance rate is extremely low. 

S: Yeah, I feel like I've been lucky enough to get into extremely competitive things. But I feel like I'm not really soaking that in and sometimes I'm too harsh on myself cause I get great opportunities, but I don't see that.

A: I can see that. Because you said you’ve been “lucky” enough to get into these programs. It's NOT luck, it's the amount of work you did. 

SHOMPA AT HOME MAKING HER ORIGINAL CHOPPED CHEESE MAC & CHEESE RECIPE. PHOTOGRAPH BY ASYA STEPNOVA

S: You're right. It is crazy to sit there and reflect on it. Because I was super involved at NBC, I got so much great experience that led me to Peloton. My contract at NBC ended March of 2020, so Covid was just happening. I was the only person in my group that did not want a job at NBC. I wanted something more fulfilling. So Covid hit and I didn’t have a job. Later that summer, someone posted a production assistant job at Peloton and it had been six months, the longest I had ever been without a job or doing anything productive, so I applied. I had no intention of working there.

A: When we hung out a couple of months ago and you told me about the job at Peloton, I was so happy for you. Because when you finished the page program, me and you were working on a web series for a friend and you would come in and tell me about all the interviews you would go on and you were rightfully frustrated. You would say “Hey, can someone please give me a production job and not just give it to their nephew, cause I’m super qualified! So you tried for a long time. Especially after doing that Page Program, it's like aren't I connected enough? Can I get a job now?

S: Yeah and especially because I was not getting the type of job I wanted. I wanted to work in late-night comedy so bad. I've interviewed for every single late-night show in New York City and got dubbed by all of them. That was so discouraging. During the program, I was doing stand-up, sketch, and improv so it was disappointing not getting the type of job I wanted. But I'm grateful for ultimately getting my job at Peloton. And now, like a year later, I've been promoted to segment producer. 

A: Tell me more about Peloton. How did you go from being a production assistant to a segment producer? 

S: So first I was a freelance PA and worked 2-3 days. Then I got promoted to full-time PA and accepted the position because I wasn't getting accepted to other jobs. Peloton is a fitness media company. The idea is that the content you're watching is entertaining you and helping you get a workout in. There's a lot of different themed classes like a broadway theme, to musical artist series, or classes that are based on gratitude. It’s not just fitness classes. There's a full production studio. People on our staff come from Disney, ESPN, NBC - they come from huge media companies. 

A:  Remember you told me that story about someone you knew who worked on production at a late-night show that I won't name, who came over to Peloton and he was like hey man, I'm finally getting paid!

S: Yup! It's also a tech company so we make way more than these media companies.

That was a huge reason to stay at Peloton. As the job went on, I got more involved. The VP of global production got familiar with me because of a contact we both shared. It was putting in the effort of knowing I wanted to move up. I picked up a lot of skills in my downtime. And it kind of went from there. I put in a lot of effort and then applied to be a segment producer. I was busy with the job and working out more seriously, and realized I missed being creative in my downtime. I thought about my passions and it always went back to food. All the jobs I chose to do at a young age revolved around food, and I wanted to go back to that. I got really fed up with people being showcased in media primarily being white, and I really wanted to give a space and platform for people of color. That’s how We’re Eating happened. I was like fuck it, I’m going to do it right now. I'm kind of compulsive so I ran with it. I found someone to hire to build a website. And I was like if I pay for this website, I have to be serious about this shit. I remember the first photo I posted on the site, an orange almond loaf cake. I was learning food styling at the same time and learning food photography. I was watching so many videos and tutorials on how to style food. I'm not amazing at it yet, but it's a new skill I picked up. That's how I was able to help people on the team as well. 

A: That's cool, you are self-taught. Where did you learn so much about cooking? Was it from your family? You've mentioned to me that your stepbrothers are chefs.

S: I learned a lot about cooking from Food Network, straight up. I wasn't really allowed to go outside and hang out with friends so I watched a lot of Food Network.

A: Yeah, Bengali parents.

S: Huge reason why I feel I’m so involved in media is because I wasn't allowed to go out so I spent a lot of time watching TV or being on the internet. I also don't wait for anyone to do things for me, so if my mom wasn't ready to cook I would make myself food. I'm very impatient. It was cool knowing my older stepbrothers went to culinary school. Our Bengali culture is very food heavy.

A: We definitely come from a food heavy culture. Did your mom teach you traditional Bengali cooking?

S: Hell no. My mom does not give a shit about cooking as much as I do. I'm not gonna force myself to learn a lot of recipes. I don't eat it that much anyway.

A: When I was at your house for the mac n cheese photoshoot there was chicken tarkari (curry) just sitting on the counter. It's always around.

S: Yup. Also my dad is a huge foodie. We've always been going to different restaurants since I was a little kid. My dad is a contractor, so back then I would accompany him and he would take me to lunch at so many places. He is the OG foodie and he got me interested in so many different cuisines. Even to this day, on weekends we go out to eat. We’re not picky, we go out to any ethnic restaurant.

A: In Bengali families, food is a bonding thing. It’s a way of saying they love you. 

S: Yeah definitely. I don't know a lot of Bengali families that go out to eat.
A: My parents love home cooking and we don’t go out to eat, really. But for example, my parents wouldn't be like… “hey um we like you” or “we’re proud”… but they'll say “here, eat this delicious thing” and it means something.

S: Yeah it's definitely a bonding thing because it's not like we’ll talk or have a conversation together. About anything. 

A: Yeah, it's not like we’re ever gonna have a drink with them. Or watch a football game or something. So what we can do is eat food together. Eat really good food in complete silence.

S: Exactly. 

A: So in college, you would go to class, and then work, and then go do standup, did you tell your parents what was going on?

S: No, never. They don't know anything about my creative work. I would just say I'm working late. It's like they know I do food videos and stuff now, but they don't see it because I have my parents blocked on Instagram. 

A: It is interesting as first-generation daughters how much we hide from our parents. Like we could become a CEO or president and just barely let our parents know.

S: My dad is more supportive. But even after I got promoted, I waited a day to tell my parents. I also get validation from myself. It's nice for someone to say I'm doing amazing, but I don't really feel it. It's hard for me to accept compliments like that. I'm a huge self-critic.

A: You're really hard on yourself.

S: Yeah, it's bad. But I can at least acknowledge it now. My boyfriend now is so supportive of everything I do. He's like shut up, look at all these great things you do. If I self-deprecate once he’ll go off on me. 

A: Wait, can I mention him in this article? I don't want your parents to find out.

S: Yeah you can. My parents are not going to know that an article came out. 

A: What is your favorite recipe on We’re Eating and why?

S: My favorite recipe on the site is my Desi Masala Chai Cupcakes. I collaborated with a South Asian bubble tea place called PYO Chai in Long Island. Why I love it so much is that I took their Masala Chai drink and literally created a cupcake recipe from it. It just let me get creative by taking this item and making it into something new. I also loved how I got so detailed with the garnish and presentation. That recipe shoot looked so great, especially for someone who is an amateur in food photography and styling. 

Courtesy of Shompa Kabir

A:  So, you started the site by hiring someone to make it. Then what?

S: The way I found an interested audience was by posting on my personal pages. Then I asked other pages, bigger ones to post it. Like Bengali organizations such as Children of 1971, Bengalis of New York, I also asked Zubi (Zubaira Ahmed) — people who had a bigger following to share my post on their page. That's when I started finding people for the team. 

A: What do you guys do as a team?

S: Different people are in charge of different things. We have the recipe development team, and then the research and social teams. Recipe development is in charge of creating recipes and doing food photography, and social and research people do interviews with local businesses, food influencer spotlights, they write food opinion pieces, mention kitchen gadgets, and anything food related. 

A: How can someone become a contributor for “We’re Eating”? 

S: If you love food, if you love talking/writing/taking photos of food, I don’t care what your background is, just come talk to me. I’m an immigrant woman of color who had no connections to start, and if this gives you a step up in life whether it’s on your resume or professionally, I want to be your biggest supporter. 

A: You said it’s really important for you to support people because you did so much without connections…

S: Absolutely. I just care if they’re passionate. I don't care if someone is thirteen years old, as long as they feel strongly about food, they can write an article. When I was younger and wanted to write editorial pieces, these people would ask for writing samples, and I would be like I’m just a kid, I don't HAVE writing samples. I didn't have anything published.

A: What are you looking for from contributors on your site?

S: So the website is being re-done right now. In the new year I want more recipes and more writers sharing pieces about food places that mean a lot to them. A really great article that came out on our site a month or two ago for latinx heritage month was one of our contributors writing this whole magazine type spread of all the places he grew up eating in Sunset Park. It was so beautiful. He wrote about what he’d buy, the prices of it, a little bit of backstory of what businesses he went to. It was so well written. I love reading articles where someone has a personal connection to a restaurant or food. 

A: That is so cool. There is no Bon Appetite or NYT cooking article about a kid growing up in Sunset Park who’s writing about the food there. It's a very ethnic, working class New York City neighborhood. What are some of your goals for the site?

S: My first goal is to be consistent with the content. Second, I would love more people to get involved. I want it to be a thriving community and platform. I want more people to post things. I want to expand on the content and do more recipes and interviews. I love doing interviews and having convos with chefs and influencers.

A: Where can someone pitch an article to you?

S: They can literally just DM me. I check all of my messages at least twice a day. I always keep up to date with the hidden inbox too because I love to read the weird DMs from men who are in love with me— shompakabir24@gmail.com or via Instagram @SHOMPSZ

A: What else do you want to do?

S: I want to travel more. I really love local produce and local products from wherever I am. I went upstate a couple of weeks ago and I loved getting farm-fresh eggs and stuff like that. I love farm-fresh vegetables. It’s the Bengali in me.

A: It’s the Bengali farmer in us.

S: I love talking to chefs. I told my boyfriend if we’re married I want him to take me to Pakistan and I want to see the women making the sweets in the sweet shops.

A: Thanks so much for doing this with me, Shompa. Anything else you’d like to share with the world?

S: Nope. I feel like I've shared enough.

A: You really did, I'm surprised. You’re a pretty closed-up person. 

S: If you’re interested in getting to know me, I'm an open book! I like a good vibe.

A: We love a good vibe. Contact Shompa and contribute to We’re Eating!

This article has been edited and condensed for clarity. 

Photographs by Asya Stepnova for Loyal Nana.