Vegan-Friendly Ben’s Chili Bowl Celebrates 60th Anniversary Amid PETA Praise

Group Pays Tribute to Iconic D.C. Restaurant’s Cofounder at Anniversary Event

For Immediate Release:
August 22, 2018

Contact:
Brooke Rossi 202-483-7382

Today, PETA was on hand to help celebrate the 60^th anniversary of vegan-friendly eatery Ben’s Chili Bowl with a heartfelt speech and framed certificate dedicated to Virginia Ali, the restaurant’s cofounder, thanking her for providing tasty vegan food at the iconic spot.

“Ben’s Chili Bowl has long drawn presidents, celebrities, tourists, and everybody in between through its doors, and we commend it for offering vegan spicy dogs, burgers, chili, and more,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is thrilled to honor visionary Virginia Ali for dishing up delicious animal-free fare and setting an example of compassion for restaurants worldwide to follow.”

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—notes that in addition to sparing the lives of nearly 200 animals a year, going vegan reduces one’s risk of suffering from diabetes, obesity, cancer, heart disease, and numerous other ailments. Animals raised for food feel pain just as dogs, cats, and humans do, yet they’re often subjected to extreme crowding, filthy conditions, routine mutilations without pain relief, a terrifying trip to the slaughterhouse, and a violent, painful death in today’s meat, egg, and dairy industries.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.