The Founder of Iconic D.C. Carryout Seafood Institution Horace and Dickie’s Has Died

Richard “Dickie” Shannon, the founder of D.C. carryout seafood institution Horace and Dickie’s, died Sunday of Covid-19 complications, according to WUSA9. He was 84 years old.

Shannon opened the first Horace and Dickie’s in Northeast D.C. in 1990 in a pint-sized, blue-and-white building off H Street that was only big enough handle carryout. Lines stretched out the doors during lunch hours as people gladly waited for a styrofoam box stuffed with cornmeal-crusted fried whiting for around $15.

In 2018, the Washington Post credited Horace and Dickie’s with serving one of 24 dishes that shaped how D.C. eats. “While trendier restaurants adopt chicken and waffles and kale, whiting remains the domain of establishments owned and frequented by African Americans — it’s an old D.C. staple amid so much newness,” the report said. (Eater D.C. documented the bustling scene at the carryout with a photo series in 2015.)

By 2020, the newness won as Shannon closed the H Street fried fish institution after a three-decade run, saying that his landlord pressured him to leave his spot in a gentrifying neighborhood that was rapidly filling up with high rises and higher rent, trendy restaurants. He called it “cultural genocide.”

Rey Lopez/Eater D.C.

In December, a tiny late-night Mexican street food stand called Taqueria Al Lado II announced plans to move into the former Horace and Dickie’s space by this spring.

Shannon’s family still operates branches of the seafood restaurant in Camp Springs, Takoma Park, Glenarden, and Waldorf.

A tribute to “Mr. Dickie”, as he was known by his customers, will be on display at his restaurant at 5601 Allentown Road in Suitland, Maryland. A funeral will be held on February 17 at 11 a.m. at Ebenezer Church in Suitland with the viewing beginning at 10 a.m, according to WJLA.

• Closing of Iconic Fried Fish Carryout Is Part of ‘Cultural Genocide,’ Owner Says
• Owner of Iconic D.C. Carryout Restaurant Horace and Dickie’s Passed Away [WUSA9]
• A Tiny Taqueria Calls Dibs on Horace and Dickie’s Former Northeast Digs
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