Abhishek Jain outside Embers ready to feed those in need. Photo: Supplied.
Every night at 9 pm, after serving paying diners, the kitchen at a Shellharbour restaurant gets to work preparing meals for people who might otherwise go to bed hungry.
For the past 18 months, Embers Fusion Indian Restaurant has been running its No One Sleeps Hungry initiative, offering those who are homeless or struggling financially a freshly prepared meal for free with no questions asked.
Founder Abhishek Jain now hopes other Illawarra restaurants will join the movement, arguing one kitchen can help, but an entire hospitality industry could make a much bigger difference.
“The idea behind it is very simple: if we have the ability to feed someone who is hungry, we should,” Abhishek said.
“Running a restaurant means that food is at the centre of everything we do, but we believe food is about much more than business.
“A warm meal can provide comfort, dignity and a reminder to someone going through a difficult period that their community has not forgotten them.”
He said other restaurants and businesses could consider similar initiatives to give back to the community, or become part of the No One Sleeps Hungry movement.
“My dream would actually be for other restaurants and other food businesses to do something similar,” he said.
“A single restaurant can’t really solve hunger.
“If the whole hospitality community comes together and starts this initiative or a campaign like No One Sleeps Hungry in the Illawarra, that can make a difference.
“The most important outcome for us is for this initiative to reach the people who need it and to build a stronger culture of kindness within our community.”
Abhishek said the initiative wasn’t part of the new NSW Government food waste reforms that took effect on 1 July requiring large businesses to separate food waste from general waste and major supermarkets to publicly report on food donations and food waste.
He said they were simply trying to provide a community service, with the difference being he was “not giving away food that is left over”.
“We prepare food for them. So it’s not like we’re going to throw this food in the bin,” he said.
“We just felt that if our kitchen is running, our chefs are here, and we have the ability to just prepare food, there should be a way for us to help someone who might otherwise go without a proper meal.
“Everything’s become so expensive and life can be difficult sometimes.
“We thought that nobody should have to go to bed hungry when there is something we can do about it.”
He said a key element of the program was dignity.
Monthly cooking classes have become popular at Embers. Photo: Supplied.
“We don’t want somebody to feel like they’re begging for food,” he said.
“’If they’re genuinely struggling and need a meal, they’re welcome at Embers.
“We don’t want to know your whole story. We don’t want to judge anybody. You just come and ask at the counter for a free meal, and we’ll give it to you. No questions asked.”
Abhishek said demand for the program fluctuated, but he didn’t mind if one person showed up or 50.
He said his motivation was simply about giving back to a community that had long supported the restaurant.
Embers began in Shellharbour Village, before moving to a 20-seater restaurant and small takeaway shop in Windang, and is now situated in Shellharbour City where it has grown to a 200-seat restaurant.
“The community has shown us so much love and support,” he said.
“To be growing like that, it’s because the customers have supported us, recommended us, celebrated their events with us.
“It’s just a way to give the community back what they’ve given us.”
Another initiative the restaurant has started is teaching people how to cook their much-loved dishes through monthly cooking classes.
“It’s just another way of helping the community,” he said.
“They love our butter chicken, so we teach them how to make it at home from scratch.
“In the past eight months we’ve had 11 cooking classes and they’ve been packed out.”
He said participants were taught in the commercial kitchen with professional equipment and guidance from one of the sous chefs and himself.
The cooking classes are advertised through his Facebook page, with a WhatsApp group in development.
The No One Sleeps Hungry initiative is open for people in need to access a free meal from 9 pm each night at Embers Fusion Indian Restaurant located at Unit 2/1 Burra Pl, Shellharbour City Centre.
