KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After more than 25 years, a Kansas City area soup kitchen is serving up a fresh new concept.
The Bishop Sullivan Center's soup kitchen got stale, so the long-time social services center on Troost Avenue, re-opened as 'One City Cafe.'
"When people come in our doors, they're going to be greeted, they're going to sit down, we're going to serve them, they're going to have choices and we're also focusing on healthy foods as well," Doug Langner, the manager of One City Cafe said.
Harvesters Community Food Network is a longtime partner of the center, providing nearly 40 percent of the cafe's food. Each day the menu changes, and the specialties come form a former Kansas City Chiefs chef.
Nikki Rowe and her three children visit One City Cafe often.
Over the summer, Rowe said she lost her food stamp benefits and was eating lunch and dinner nearly every day at the cafe.
"The better the food is, the better the conversation is you know, if you can taste the love in the food then that's good," she said.
Taking a seat at the table, doesn't leave customers with a big bill. One City Cafe calls it dining with dignity, a pay what you can concept.
"What we want is anyone that needs a meal to walk through this door without any worries that they can't afford it," Langner said.
Since launching One City Cafe in January, Langner said the cafe is serving twice as many meals for dinner. On average, 200 meals are being provided every night.
Aside from feeding families, Langner hopes to bring people together around one table.
"East or west of Troost, north or south of the river, Kansas or Missouri, it's a place where we want to bring people together," he said.
One City Cafe is open for dinner every Monday through Friday from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
If you're interested in getting involved, the cafe needs volunteers to serve the food. You can also provide a meal for all who need it by sponsoring a night for $150.
