HARLEM, Manhattan (WABC) — So many people during this cold stretch are struggling to find a warm meal. A non-profit restaurant and food pantry in Harlem are helping change that and making sure that meal comes along with a good dining experience.<\/p>\n
On a frigid night in Harlem you will find a place where the door is open to everyone, where the hearty soup is piping hot and where having a big heart matters much more than any culinary credentials.<\/p>\n
“This is what gives me good vibes – treating people well, feeding them. The karma comes back to you,” said volunteer Kay.<\/p>\n
You do not have to fit into any of society’s boxes to sit at these tables. The experience, which is that of a Michelin-starred restaurant, is open to anyone at Refettorio Harlem – a non-profit restaurant and food pantry.<\/p>\n
“You can work full time and not be able to afford groceries, so anyone who comes here can eat here. That’s how it is,” said Free Food Harlem General Manager Matt Sherman.<\/p>\n
It is more than a fine-dining experience – it is about feeding the soul. Many of the people who come are regulars who were looking for a place where they felt they belonged. Soon enough, some of them ended up in the kitchen serving others who were looking for the same thing.<\/p>\n
Isa Muhammad found his way out of the shelter. Once a guest, he now finds his purpose working in the kitchen.<\/p>\n
“I’m 35 years old. I want to get married; I want to have children; I want to do things in society. I want to be – I want to continue that arc of progression. So in that realm – I’m the one being benefitted still from the place, by way of getting the opportunity to be of service,” said Muhammad.<\/p>\n
Chef Michael Lesser is in charge of crafting the multi-course meal out of donated food that would otherwise be thrown out on the menu – cornmeal crusted catfish and Creole butternut squash soup.<\/p>\n
“I describe it as the best job I never knew I wanted,” said Lesser.<\/p>\n
The operation is run by the organization ‘Free Food’ our of Emanuel A.M.E Church. It makes dignity a part of fine dining.<\/p>\n
“Bringing all the kind of forgotten parts of society – whether it’s the homeless or the unhoused or the incarcerated – that those are missing parts of us and when you bring those people together, you start to build stronger community,” said Free Food Harlem Director Bob Wilms.<\/p>\n
“They welcomed us here. Every Wednesday and every Friday they welcomed us here,” said Donna McCoy.<\/p>\n
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