providing free soup, healthy meals for Richmonders in need

Earlier than the pandemic, the Underground Kitchen was identified for its glamorous, sold-out $150-per-plate dinners from high cooks in secret places.

However when the pandemic closed down bars and eating places, the Underground Kitchen was shuttered too.

“For weeks we didn’t know what we have been going to do. We had fridges filled with meals and folk who couldn’t work. We determined we have been going to make meals for anybody in Richmond,” founder Micheal Sparks mentioned. “No matter your socio or financial background was, you can have a free meal. We wished to unfold a bit of love within the metropolis.”

Throughout their first week, UGK delivered 175 meals to the general public. They started working with companies across the metropolis to ship meals to the meals insecure and poverty-stricken areas within the metropolis, particularly within the East Finish.

Now, UGK has served over 225,000 meals to these in want. And launched its non-profit arm, the Underground Kitchen Community First Meals Program.

“This can be a neighborhood going through hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart illness. We wished to introduce wholesome, chef-prepared, natural, free vary meals that’s tasty. And that may make individuals really feel higher,” Sparks mentioned.

In 2021, greater than 34 million individuals, together with 9 million kids, confronted meals insecurity, in accordance with america Division of Agriculture. Households in low-income city areas typically dwell in “meals deserts,” with restricted entry to a grocery retailer, which makes it more durable to entry wholesome meals. Now, with inflation, grocery tales costs have soared 13.5% in August from the 12 months earlier than, the very best annual enhance in over 40 years, in accordance with authorities knowledge, making it even more durable for low-income households to entry wholesome meals.

Meals insecurity can result in the well being dangers Sparks talked about: Kind 2 diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart illness, and weight problems. Black communities expertise starvation, poverty, and unemployment at a lot larger charges than white individuals, in accordance with Feeding America, a home hunger-relief group. In 2021, practically 20% of Black people lived in a meals insecure family. Black individuals are nearly thrice as prone to face starvation as white people.

“There is not any one doing contemporary, ready, natural, meals for this neighborhood. That is why we stepped in,” Sparks mentioned.

Feeding the hungry contemporary meals

On a current morning at a tiny little church known as Religion Covenant Christian Fellowship in Richmond’s East Finish close to Mosby Court docket, UGK’s Neighborhood First Meals Program dropped off over 100 contemporary soups.

“This proper right here, this one is my favourite,” Serena Pittman mentioned, pointing to the collard inexperienced soup. It’s made with contemporary collard greens, chard, strawberry spinach, rice and roasted pork.

Pittman lives within the neighborhood and stops by the church along with her nephew to choose up meals all through the week. Pastor Mary Gleason works exhausting to obtain meals from Meals Lion and BJ’s that she makes use of to assist feed the neighborhood. However the contemporary, chef-prepared dishes from UGK are a neighborhood favourite.

“I’d quite have greens than meat,” Pittman mentioned. “And my nephew eats it up.”

Moreover the collard inexperienced favourite, Jermaine Carson dropped off cabbage soup brimming with contemporary cabbage and tomatoes and beef stew with seasonal root greens and herbs.

Carson is the kitchen supervisor in UGK’s Neighborhood First Meals Program. After spending years in Richmond eating places and catering, he mentioned cooking for UGK’s meals program “is an opportunity to do one thing constructive. It’s good to see the meals I’m cooking is touching individuals for the higher. It’s not quick meals. It exposes individuals to a wholesome life-style.”

His area of interest is more healthy soul meals. “Some individuals suppose that with Southern meals, all the flavour comes from butter and fats. However I like to indicate how one can incorporate wholesome flavors and other people gained’t miss the fats or the butter,” Carson mentioned.

UGK companions with Richmond-based Shalom Farms to obtain contemporary greens. Since 2020, the farm has donated roughly 10,000 kilos of contemporary greens like peppers, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, zucchini and squash to UGK.

“We imagine that everyone deserves entry to contemporary, wholesome meals wherever they’re,” Anna Ibrahim, government director of the farm, mentioned. “We’ve very mission aligned with UGK in how we view the scope of the issue within the communities we serve. Recent meals should not be out of attain for anyone.”

“Micheal calls it meals with dignity,” Kate Houck, Sparks’ enterprise accomplice in Underground Kitchen mentioned. “It’s from our hearts to theirs. We wish them to really feel cared for. That’s crucial.”

Selling variety and cooks of coloration

“We’ve at all times promoted cooks of coloration, girls, minorities and members of the LGBTQ neighborhood within the trade,” Sparks mentioned. “What we’re doing is type of new within the trade. We’re selling variety by meals and beverage, which is admittedly particular.”

Chef Hamidullah Noori, proprietor of The Mantu a contemporary Afghan restaurant in Carytown, credit the Underground Kitchen for serving to launch his profession.

After serving as government chef on the five-star Kabul Serena Lodge, Noori, alongside together with his household, fled Afghanistan in 2015 when situations grew to become too harmful to remain.

He was launched to Sparks and Houck who tapped him as a headlining chef for numerous eating occasions all through Virginia and past.

“It was the primary time I used to be getting ready a contemporary type of delicacies from Afghanistan which grew to become The Mantu,” Noori mentioned. “We traveled in every single place and cooked from North Carolina to D.C.”

Noori shaped a quick friendship with Sparks and Houck who helped him launch The Mantu.

“All the things that you simply see within the restaurant is designed by UGK. Ranging from the desk, to the menu, to the plating, the wine and cocktails. After I was opening the restaurant, Micheal even drove with me to Alexandria to select the silverware,” Noori mentioned. “I owe him loads. I name him my Black brother.”

Throughout COVID, when the kitchen was closed, Noori helped on the Underground Kitchen on Oliver Hill Method, getting ready soups for the Neighborhood First Meals program.

UGK has additionally helped up-and-coming cooks like Will Leung-Richardson, creator of the Asian-American meals truck Kudzu RVA and chef Natascha “TAZ” Bowles, a biracial Richmond chef.

“We wished to create a secure area for cooks to prepare dinner, for cooks to get to know restaurant literacy, authorized literacy and monetary literacy in order that they will go to the following stage,” Sparks mentioned.

“For Micheal and Kate, it’s not concerning the cash. It’s about introducing unknown cooks to the world,” Noori mentioned.

Introducing a wholesome meal equipment program

Calvette Clanton didn’t know what to do when the pandemic shuttered doorways and residents needed to keep of their properties at Armstrong Renaissance, the brand new mixed-income neighborhood that’s changing Creighton Court docket within the East Finish.

“We’re a brand new non-profit to Richmond. 30% of our residents got here from Creighton Court docket,” she mentioned.

“One of many largest points this neighborhood faces is being a meals desert. We’re combating entry to contemporary fruits, contemporary greens,” Clanton mentioned.

When the pandemic stored everybody inside, Clanton struggled to search out assets to maintain the residents secure and secure of their properties, particularly the seniors. Because the neighborhood life providers coordinator, she reached out to UGK which started delivering soups for the seniors.

“Micheal and Kate have a transparent ardour for feeding the neighborhood,” she mentioned.

Now, Armstrong is working with UGK to develop a program of wholesome meal kits for households and for seniors.

“With seniors, you possibly can’t go to a meals financial institution and get a meal that’s custom-made to your dietary wants. If you happen to’re combating hypertension, you don’t desire a meal that’s excessive in sodium. UGK will likely be creating one pot meals for them. We’re seeking to monitor over time the well being affect this meals is making for our seniors,” Calvette mentioned.

They’re additionally planning to launch an after-school program the place UGK supplies a sizzling meal as soon as every week for the youth that come to the after-school program. UGK can also be planning a wholesome meal equipment for households to arrange at dwelling. The wholesome meals program is predicted to launch within the weeks forward.

“There’s no motive why this neighborhood shouldn’t have the identical high quality meals that the individuals coming to our dinners have,” Houck mentioned.

For the foodies who observe the Underground Kitchen’s high-end, $150-per-plate dinners, these are ramping again up once more. In August, the Underground Kitchen held a sold-out dinner with Chef Natascha “Taz” Bowles and in October, one other sold-out meal from Chef Jason Bullard.

The Underground Kitchen has additionally launched a wine-tasting program to focus on girls in wine, Black wine makers and different under-represented gamers within the trade. UGK has additionally been internet hosting particular dinners, like at Fort Monroe to assist elevate funds for the African Touchdown Memorial Challenge and to discover the historical past of the world. In Manchester, UGK opened a public-facing store at 205 Hull Avenue that sells curated wines, meals gadgets and wares. A portion of all gross sales go to help UGK Neighborhood First.

Sparks mentioned that as a lot as UGK misplaced throughout COVID — which was lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} in deliberate dinners and misplaced income — he mentioned, “I feel that we gained a lot extra due to the work we did throughout COVID. I feel we’re coming again with a stronger, extra strong Underground Kitchen.

“Kate and I at all times wished to do one thing like this, however we have been by no means capable of decelerate sufficient to do it,” Sparks mentioned. “We needed to ramp up actually quick. Our expertise in experiential pop-ups put us in a superb place to get all people gathered and make issues occur actually quick.”

“COVID made us higher individuals and much more aware. We get up otherwise each morning. We all know that we’re feeding lots of of individuals and instructing them tips on how to eat higher to increase their lives.”