More than 30 people folded samosas in the private room upstairs at Kabab King, a Pakistani neighborhood institution in Jackson Heights, Queens.

The ticketed event ($30) marked the fourth Dumplings and Dialogue programming for Chuck Park’s electoral campaign for the 6th Congressional District that includes Flushing, Forest Hills, Elmhurst, Woodside and Jackson Heights. U.S. Rep. Grace Meng has represented the reliably Democratic district since 2013; Park is looking to unseat her. The primary election is June 23.

While food has always played a supporting role in political campaigns, Mayor Zohran Mamdani changed up the game by spotlighting the food and restaurants of working-class immigrants of color. Park is now presenting another chapter of that playbook.

In recent mayoral dining history, Eric Adams visited Le Pavilion (French), Rao’s, and Mario’s (both Italian) while Michael Bloomberg ate burgers at J.G. Melon and turkey wraps at now-closed Scobee Grill. Bill De Blasio dined at Arepa Lady (Colombian), Royal Queen (Chinese), The Door (Caribbean), and Melba’s (soul food). And Mamdani campaigned at — and continues to visit — establishments like Boishaki (Bangladeshi), Abuelita’s Desserts (Puerto Rican), and Saint Louis (Senegalese).

“What's so interesting about Mamdani is that he’s introducing everybody to different kinds of food,” said Ruth O’Brien, a political science professor at CUNY Graduate Center. It’s not, she said, “Americana of white populations.”

For Park, the dumpling series is a way to connect with the cultural communities within the district. Of the 726,418 residents of the 6th Congressional District, 44% are Asian, 26% Hispanic, and 22% white; 55.4% are foreign-born. Park’s previous dumpling events have reflected these demographics, and have spanned Korean mandoo, Filipino lumpia, and Chinese jiaozi.

His most recent dumpling event spotlighted the Bangladeshi samosa. Volunteer hosts Noor Shams and Rachel Gurjar taught guests to assemble two kinds: vegetarian with potato, peas, carrot, onions, peanuts; the other with ground beef. Fillings were seasoned with cumin, coriander, and mango chutney, and wrapped into crackly triangles of rice paper.

Most of the guests that I spoke with showed up to support Park, particularly drawn to his demand to abolish ICE, his rejection of PAC donations, his opposition to the war in Gaza, and a shared understanding of working-class immigrant struggles.

The samosas were the proverbial icing on the cake.

Local resident Parvez Jamal brought his two kids to learn to make samosas. “This is a good skill for them. I want them to be more engaged with the Bengali culture,” he said, as their little hands scooped up a spoonful of potato filling.

Jo Bird, who loves eating samosas, said, “I was absolutely more likely to come because food was involved. It's so much less awkward, right?”

Food can also be used to bring attention to immigrant-owned small businesses. Shahrukh Ali, whose parents opened Kabab King in 1995, said he’s seen an ongoing flow of new customers since Mamdani gave the business a shoutout last fall on platforms from TikTok to The New Yorker.

Also in attendance was Tsomo Dasel, owner of the Himalayan Yak restaurant, a pioneer of the cuisine located just around the block. She said she's known Park's parents for years — they still run their uniforms store several blocks away. She's been beset with small business penalties and fees, and neighborhood concerns around sanitation and ICE. She aid she came to support a candidate who understands what it’s like in the small-biz trenches.

Park’s campaign has used food as a conversational lubricant; neighborhood marker; a cultural and socioeconomic signifier; and a vehicle for policy issues like affordability and support for small businesses, whose numbers have plunged even as food exploration has become mainstream.

If anyone knows about the versatility of food stories in modern political campaigns, it’s the team behind Melted Solids, the social video production team used by Mamdani. Since 2019, founders Debbie Saslaw and Anthony Di Mieri have incorporated food into social campaign videos: from Rafael Espinal at Roberta’s Pizza in Brooklyn to Ro Khanna talking grocery beef prices, and an upcoming video featuring Brad Lander, Mamdani and farmer’s market apples.

Of all their food-related campaign videos, it was “Halalflation” that went viral and snagged awards.

“It was a perfect combination” of the cost of food as a talking point, colorful visuals, and an immigrant narrative that presented this “new angle for a politician from the left to be challenging the bureaucracy,” said Di Mieri. Plus, this was “authentic” to Mamdani, who’d produced a music video inside a halal cart in 2019.

Likewise, Park also loves dumplings: from making them with family during his childhood to participating in a pre-politics Momo Crawl eating competition.

“Every culture in the world has some form of dumpling, and so we thought that could be a great entry point for community,” he said.