Meet our team: Sam Delgado

What’s your relationship to D.C.? Are you from the area, and if not, why did you move here?

I moved to D.C. after I graduated in college in 2020, smack dab in the middle of the covid pandemic. I’ve lived in a few different rowhouses and apartments since moving here, but I've always been in the Columbia Heights area.

I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, a place I love so much that I have a tattoo of a landmark in the city on my arm. But D.C. has become my home. It’s the only place I’ve lived in as an adult, and I’ve never considered leaving since arriving here. 

What do you love about local news? Why did you decide to join The 51st team?

As a reader of local news, I never get tired of how it hits close to home. You can be reading a story and then you’ll see your neighbor was interviewed. Or maybe you’ll find out that a new restaurant is opening up just a couple blocks down from your home. Sometimes, it’s not always good or fun news — and in those moments, I feel grateful that there are journalists who are trying their best to keep people informed.

As a journalist, I love how reporting on local news gives me the opportunity to learn more about the past and present of D.C. Getting to show up in different neighborhoods, talk to residents, and hear their stories, experiences, and expertise makes me appreciate this beautiful, complicated city a little bit more every day. 

That’s why I’m so excited to be joining The 51st. This newsroom puts D.C. residents and communities at the forefront of our stories: their questions, their struggles, their triumphs, and everything in between.

Where would you eat your last D.C. meal?

This is an insane question, because how can a person choose when this city has so much good food? It’s tough, but I’ll say Caruso’s Grocery on Capitol Hill. They have a garlic bread with a four cheese sauce that never ceases to amaze me. Their pastas are all delicious, and of course, I can’t pass up on taking a slice of tiramisu to go.

What’s your perfect D.C. day?

My perfect D.C. day starts off by getting up early and walking to Doubles in Park View to get the same drink I’ve had nearly every day for the last 2 years: an iced oat chai. Then I make a pit stop to La Tejana in Mount Pleasant and order two Tio Willies. 

After, I walk down 14th Street to Solid State Books, where I peruse titles for half an hour, and ultimately walk out with at least one book even though I told myself there were books at home I still had to read. Then I'd head over to Malcolm X Park, and my friends would show up with blankets and snacks, and we'd hang out until the sun sets. 

I walk home, but not before stopping by Salt and Pepper Grill for some butter chicken. Throughout the day, the temperature never tops 75 degrees.