As the Table Turns: Culinaria Group Helps Furloughed Hospitality Workers During COVID-19 Crisis
April 9, 2020 - San Antonio
Love in a box. Chef Jason Dady (right) serves a a hot meal to a furloughed worker at Alamo BBQ Company. Photo: Jade Esteban Estrada.
By Jade Esteban Estrada - Staff Writer, San Antonio Sentinel
In the weeks that have passed since local restaurants were forced to shutter their dining rooms amid the coronavirus crisis, the nonprofit group Culinaria has stepped up to help furloughed hospitality workers with short and long-term assistance.
In the past, the organization’s fundraising model has been through community events (like Titans of Tailgate and their 5K Wine Run) that would benefit a specific individual, family or school group. Now that public gatherings are prohibited, the collective is focusing its energy on addressing the needs of individuals, restaurants and bars in three different ways.
HospitALLity House, which launched on March 20, is ensuring that those in the hospitality industry continue to receive a hot meal. Service is provided by famed Chef Jason Dady himself and his "hot meals dream team" from 4-7 p.m. Monday through Saturday at Alamo BBQ located at 511 East Grayson Street. (This week, Culinaria updated their service times; they are no longer serving on Sundays and have reduced their offerings from two meals a day to dinner only.) Food donations and monetary contributions from generous individuals and businesses have helped support this program, which has already fed more than 12,000 individuals during its first two weeks of operation.
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Chef Jason Dady wears the now-recommended mask in late March. Photo: Jade Esteban Estrada.
Secondly, Culinaria’s family meal kits are networked through chefs for distribution to furloughed workers.
“It’s a true testament to the chef community and how they have rallied to help all of their furloughed employees,” said Dady, who is an executive board member of Culinaria and the owner of the Jason Dady Restaurant Group.
For long-term needs, an Emergency Relief Fund has been established and will issue funds to hospitality workers in need of financial assistance. Individuals and businesses are encouraged to donate to the fund through PayPal or Venmo at @Culinaria. For those who would like to request relief, the application process is outlined on their website.
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Because the current need is greater than the resources that are now available, Culinaria will continue its outreach to raise funds for their program that also aims to monetarily help restaurants and bars to reopen when that time ultimately comes.
“Of course, our biggest efforts are to make sure that these individuals are provided a meal and a bit of hope that everything is going to be okay,” Taranto-Etheredge added. “Right now, we’re trying to be flexible and adapt in an effort to assist in any way we can.”
Jade Esteban Estrada is a staff writer at the San Antonio Sentinel, where he covers public health issues. He can be reached at jade@sasentinel.com.