In celebration of October as Global Diversity Month, we would like to introduce you to the owners of the K2 Café in Poolesville. The pair originate from different cultures with different world views.
Ashar (pronounced like assure) Abbasi is from Pakistan, a country bordered by China, India, Iran, and Afghanistan. Near its border with China lays the forbidding K2 Mountain where not all those who have tried to climb have succeeded and survived.
At home, Ashar’s family spoke Punjabi. In school he learned Urdu. His second foreign language was English. He learned to read and write it but had few opportunities to practice speaking it in his college – our equivalent of junior and senior years of high school.
With his father’s business struggling, Ashar, at 18, knew he had to leave his home. His dad had a friend and a cousin in the US, so Ashar landed at JFK International Airport with a suitcase and little else, hoping to carve out his American Dream. There were many bumps in the road along the way. His first job in the US was as a carpet installer. Next, he learned to make fried chicken at a fast-food eatery. Mostly, Ashar drove a cab for a living, first in New York City then later in the District of Columbia (DC).
One evening in 2002, Nichole met Ashar while a passenger in his cab in DC. At the time, the second-year teacher who had moved to the DC area from her family’s hobby farm in western New York state shared the same unease as many in our country toward all people from South Asia. The national wounds of 9/11 still cut deep, and it was easy to lump people who looked like Ashar together.
That first ride started less than smoothly when Nicole snuck a peek at her brown skinned cabbie from South Asia. This man, who looked and spoke differently, made her ill at ease.
Ashar was accustomed to this less than flattering behavior and prepared to overcome Nichole’s distrust. He engaged her in conversation. He wanted to learn more about America, his forever home, and here was an opportunity. Nichole bashfully admits that at that time she was completely oblivious to the struggles of immigrants, and if she hadn’t noticed that her driver was cute, this would have been the end instead of the beginning of their story together.
The two talked for hours, discovering commonalities and becoming friends. For several months, Nichole regularly rode with Ashar in his taxi, not as a passenger, but as a tag along. She watched with fascination how he was able to handle anything verbally thrown his way as he functioned as both a driver and, at times, a therapist for his customers.
There were occasions when the friends’ different cultures clashed. Early on, Ashar promised Nichole an evening of fine dining “at the best restaurant in DC”. Whatever she imagined, eating at a halal Chinese buffet restaurant was not on her radar. Nichole felt out of place. She couldn’t help but notice she was the only woman there not dressed in Islamic garb. Once she got past the differences, though, Nichole also discovered the food – essentially the Muslim version of Jewish Kosher cuisine — was good.
That summer their budding friendship was put to another test. Nichole left for a backpacking trip across Europe. Being away from him, she found herself missing her new friend. She couldn’t wait to tell him about her experiences and spent a lot of time and money calling long distance to the US. By the time she landed in Venice, the two blurted out their feelings to one another.
Nichole left DC to pursue a master’s in labor relations at U Mass Amherst. After graduating in 2005, she moved to California for what she thought would be her dream job. While she was there, Ashar continued driving a cab in DC to help his own two sisters achieve their dreams of becoming a doctor and a pharmacist.
The couple took their next step, became engaged and, after her return from California, Ashar and Nichole married. They went to Pakistan for their honeymoon and repeated their vows for their families. Nichole wore a traditional wedding dress for the ceremony.
Upon their return the Abbasi’s relocated to Connecticut. They worked several jobs to build their future. Ashar finished school, became a lab technician, and their first son was born. All this time, Ashar thought about starting a business. Choosing the right one was complicated on multiple fronts.
By the time Ashar and Nichole moved to Poolesville in 2019, the desire to be business proprietors burned hot. They narrowed their selections to something food related and even thought of running a kebab operation. When they discovered the former combination snack bar and athletic club on West Willard Road, they knew they had found their perfect match.
For the past year, the Abbasi’s have run the K2 Café and Poolesville Athletic Club. Their ‘fast casual’ menu is a fusion of Himalayan inspired and American bistro favorites (minus the fries). All of it is made to order.
Himalayan spices typically include jalapeno, ginger, cilantro, pickled carrot achar and hot sauce; ingredients found in their K2 Spicy Select Breakfast which, by the way, serves as a loving nod to the first dish Ashar ever prepared for Nichole. More traditional choices like turkey sandwiches, lox and bagels, muffins, croissants, scones and cakes are available alongside eclectic fare such as curries, and spicy select wraps, “N’izza’s” (flatbread pizzas), Bowls for the Soul, and jelabi, a vegan fried dough swirl dipped in rosewater syrup.
In Pakistan, wherever you go, chai is served as a hello. Ashar and Nichole are proud to present menu items that helped to bridge their own divides like their own variation of this friendly custom. Partnering with Rustic Route coffee, they created a drink called K2 Specialty Blend which combines roasted coffee beans with Pakistani chai ingredients. The result is a rich dark aromatic spicy yet soothing “dirty coffee”.
Despite all the challenges they faced individually, collectively, personally and professionally, Ashar and Nichole have boldly chosen to live their lives fearlessly. Each new dish they introduce at their restaurant reflects a side of them in some unique way. The Abbasi’s are grateful to Poolesville for accepting them to the community, and they place great importance on building personal relationships. Ashar and Nichole welcome all their patrons regardless of nationality or language spoken with the same spirit embodied in their motto at K2, “It’s About You!”
Look for the K2 Café in the shopping center at West Willard Rd. and Fisher Ave., near Poolesville High School. Their hours of operation are 7 days a week, Monday – Friday, 7:00 am – 4:30 pm, Saturday & Sunday, 7:30 am – 3:30 pm. Enjoy!