Mumbo sauce facts for kids
A bottle of Mumbo sauce.
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Mumbo sauce (also called mambo sauce) is a special sauce from Washington, D.C.. It's a popular condiment often found in take-out restaurants there. This red-orange sauce is a bit like barbecue sauce, but it's usually sweeter. It can also be a little spicier or more sour.
People love to put Mumbo sauce on many foods. It's great on fried chicken wings, french fries, fried jumbo shrimp, and fried rice. The exact story of how Mumbo sauce started and what's in it is a bit of a mystery! It's sometimes compared to "mild sauce" found in Chicago's Black neighborhoods.
Contents
The Story of Mumbo Sauce
Where Did Mumbo Sauce Come From?
The name "Mumbo" for a sauce was first used by a man named Argia B. Collins, Sr. He created a barbecue sauce for his restaurant in Chicago way back in the 1950s. His company later officially registered the "Mumbo" name as a trademark. This means they own the right to use that name for their sauces.
Later, a sauce called "Mumbo Sauce" became popular in Washington, D.C. It was used in Chinese restaurants there, especially on chicken wings and fries. Some people thought this D.C. sauce was a new thing. However, since the Chicago "Mumbo" sauce existed first, many believe the D.C. version might have been inspired by or brought over from Chicago.
The Name Battle
For a while, there was a legal disagreement about the name "Mumbo Sauce." A company in D.C. wanted to use the name, but the Chicago company that owned the original trademark disagreed. After a couple of years, a court decided that the D.C. company could not take the name from its Chicago founder. So, the original Chicago company still owns the "Mumbo" trademark.
A Mayor's Opinion
In 2018, the mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, caused a bit of a stir. She posted on social media that she found Mumbo Sauce "annoying." She also wondered if it was truly a "quintessential" (meaning, a perfect example of) D.C. food. Her comments sparked a lot of discussion and debate among people in D.C. Her spokesperson later said she was just trying to make Thanksgiving conversations more lively!
