Chef Shawn Lightfoot entered the culinary industry in 1982 under the tutelage of Chef Gary Black, then at Washington, D.C.’s famed Hogates Seafood Restaurant. Chef Lightfoot brings more than 30 years of culinary experience to the kitchen and hospitality world. He got his degree at The Baltimore International Culinary Institute of Culinary Arts, and he also studied at the famed Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park, New York. As he continued his education, he developed and refined his style as a chef. So when he decided to bring people a taste, he decided to redraw the fence line. Truly, the Chef’s philosophy is, it’s all about the people, the food and drink. In light of that, he co-founded The Fresh Food Factory and Art-drenaline Café, which are a response to the call for a healthier change in underserved communities, namely Anacostia’s Ward 8 in Southeast Washington, D.C. The Fresh Food Factory is a culinary social enterprise that connects communities through urban agriculture, social culture, commerce and the culinary arts while offering innovation and entrepreneurship as well as new opportunities and ideas of recycling and reusing re-purposed shipping containers. The Café features quality food and is a community-inspired eatery that is ardent about serving fresh food options to area employees, locals, and commuters, while training and employing the District of Columbia residents, returning citizens, veterans and persons with mental disabilities, specifically from Ward 8. The Café is proud to say that it will use local purveyors for its ingredients.