This AM, I pulled myself together and to the kitchen of Miriam’s Kitchen by 5:30 AM to crack eggs and serve coffee and juice and take numbers in the generous and amazing chez Miriam. I will be going back tomorrow PM to prepare and serve dinner as well. I can’t get enough. What makes MK special is that it doesn’t serve their homeless guests gruel and weak coffee — they do it right. Here’s the email I just received from them:
Food is an important part of our work.
It brings our guests in. Our guests first come to us for our great food, but once they’re with us we can begin to help them beyond meeting their basic needs.
It shows our guests that we care deeply about them. The quality of food that our chefs produce shows our guests that we care enough to do more than is expected, which helps us build the trust that is critical to our work.
It brings our community closer. By offering opportunities to volunteer in our kitchen, donate fresh food and learn more about the issues our guests face, our Meals Program is a way to develop understanding between our guests and our community.
It matters to our guests’ survival. Nutrition is important, especially when serious physical and mental health issues are a concern for many of our guests.
ON OUR MENU TONIGHT: Roasted lamb pita, creamy oregano grits, crisp garden salad, fresh fruit salad, and homemade pecan pie.
Where does that food come from?
The lamb was purchased with donated gift cards from our local Costco. That same Costco donates more than 1,000 pounds of quality food to our kitchen each week.
The salad greens and fruit were donated by Sunnyside Farm and Orchard, a purveyor at the FRESHFARM Foggy Bottom Farmers Market. Sunnyside and other FRESHFARM farmers donate more than 100 pounds of local produce to us each week.
The heirloom cucumbers in our salad were donated by the GroW garden, a neighborhood garden planted by The George Washington University students and home to our guests’ very own garden plot. More than 20% of our produce comes from community gardens just like the GroW garden.
And the pecan pie was made from scratch in our kitchen by our volunteer pastry chefs. The pecans were donated by Georgetown Cupcake and are a tasty way for us to get a lot of nutrition onto our guests’ plates.
So that’s where our food comes from–our generous community of friends like you.
Thanks for continuing to fill our guests’ plates with healthy, local meals.
