‘Dine-by-donation’ dinners in Adelaide aim to reduce food waste and feed the less fortunate
An acclaimed Adelaide restaurant will feed anyone on Sunday night (August 30) – and only asks patrons to pay what they can afford.
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“It’s staggering how much food gets thrown in the bin, while all these people lack food and security,” says local hospitality worker, Kate Richards.
Richards and chef Joel Tisato, of city restaurant Africola, have developed Adelaide’s first series of dine-by-donation dinners. They’re collaborating with restaurants to cook up food rescued through OzHarvest, and put on a meal for which people can pay what they can afford.
They’ve called the concept, Share.
“It’s the kind of program that every city deserves,” says Richards.
The first official dinner is this Sunday night, at Adelaide’s leading Thai restaurant Soi.38 in Pulteney St.
“We will have money tins by the door, which you can leave cash in when you leave,” Richards says. “If you can’t afford to pay, then you just leave. We don’t ask questions, there is no judgment. Just come and have a meal.”
The project has been months in the making; put on hold as a result of COVID-19. They’ve had strong support, including from their boss, Africola owner Duncan Welgemoed; local creative agency Super Assembly who’ve worked pro bono and producers such as Windsor Meats.
Tisato will be cooking with Soi.38 chef Terry Intrarakhamhaeng to create a three-course meal on the night, which runs form 6pm-8pm with two sittings available. Money received will feed back into the cause, while extra will go to local charities.
More than five million tonnes of food ends up as landfill each year – enough to fill 9000 Olympic sized swimming pools.
“I would like to be able to be part of the solution from an environmental standpoint, and socially,” Richards says. “But it’s such a collaborative project; it’s not just me and Joel. We’re running it, but it’s about being able to help people.”