Feb19

overcoming.

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Michelin-starred chef heads restaurant entirely staffed by formerly unhoused people

Adam Simmonds is a two-time Michelin-starred chef and Catey Awards Hotel Chef of the Year recipient. And last year, he added chef director of the world’s first restaurant almost entirely staffed by previously unhoused individuals to his resume. Home Kitchen, located in Primrose Hill, London, is a nonprofit fine dining establishment that provides its staff with travel expenses, professional culinary qualifications, and the London living wage.

Aside from some senior members, the team is recruited solely from the unhoused community. If staff members pass a 90-day probation, they’re eligible for a fully paid culinary training course at Westminster Kingsway College. The goals of the whole operation are to kickstart the staff’s careers, address worker shortages in the hospitality industry, and confront the “very flawed public perceptions of what it is to be homeless,” Home Kitchen co-founder Michael Brown told The Guardian.

Simmonds is now working on additional launches in Brighton, England, and San Francisco. “Home Kitchen will act as an accelerant out of poverty for our recruits and an incubator of untapped talent for the catering industry,” he wrote ahead of the London restaurant’s opening. “I believe the restaurant business is an ideal vehicle for social impact, as changing perceptions in this industry can inspire broader societal change.”

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‘although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.’

-helen keller

 

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source credits: home kitchen, the guardian

 

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80 responses »

  2. Another great idea. In Norfolk we also have a large cafe staffed only by people who have Down’s Syndrome. The owner wanted to prove that they can be left to run a business and are as good at is as anyone else.
    Best wishes, Pete.

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  5. Oh this is such a heartwarming, soul soothing, meaningful ans much needed social enterprise! I love it! I could see San Francisco benefitting from this a lot, when I think of the Mission District in particular. I would love to see something like this in Toronto too!

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  19. What an amazing concept and project. A business created to create jobs only for homeless people no one wants to hire. The motivation on all sides must be extremely high, which is why it works so well. Fantastic! Thanks for sharing, Beth!

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