Red Bank eatery would offer low-cost, nutritious meals
Written by
LARRY HIGGS
STAFF WRITER
The foundation started by Central Jersey rocker Jon Bon Jovi plans to open its first community restaurant on Monmouth Street, where, pending local approvals, no one will get denied a good, nutritious meal.
Plans were filed late last month by the Philadelphia based Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation to convert a former auto repair shop to a neighborhood restaurant that will serve low-cost or no-cost meals to the community.
"This will be our first community kitchen, it would be fantastic if it took off and we could replicate it," said Mimi Box, executive director of the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation. "This is operated just like a restaurant. People can bring their families, they have a selection of items and have options to pay cash or volunteer."
Volunteers can work at the kitchen or with other local charities that need volunteers that the foundation hopes to work with, she said. Those who can afford to pay, could also donate more toward another person's meal, Box said.
The foundation has applied to the borough for approvals to convert a former auto shop in the rear of a 7,424-square-foot lot on Monmouth Street between Bridge and Shrewsbury avenues. Plans call for tearing down a one-story house in the front of the lot for a four-space parking lot and using the back yard for outdoor seating. The ex-auto shop would house the four-table restaurant and kitchen.
Site plan approval would be needed from the borough planning board, which might hear the application later this month, officials said. Box said there is no target date to open the restaurant.
"I would have loved to have had it (open) yesterday, but we realize there is a process to go through and we are working through that process," she said.
The foundation did some piloting of the concept late last year at St. Anthony's, offering gourmet Sunday dinners using the same pricing structure to benefit Lunch Break, Box said.
The foundation started researching the concept after Middletown native Brian Williams aired a segment on his NBC Nightly News cast about a similar community restaurant in Denver, Box said. That restaurant was based on one in Salt Lake City and foundation officials contacted them to learn about its operation, she said.
"It caught our attention because of the social aspect, there are no prices on the menus and everyone can eat there and they serve healthy, nutritious food," Box said. "Each has subtle differences, but at the root of them all lies the concept that everyone, no matter what their status, should have the ability to eat nutritiously."
The Bon Jovis aren't strangers to Red Bank, having financially helped to support the Parker Family Health Center, which provides medical care to people in need, Box said.
"Jon and his wife have roots in the Red Bank area and so many of their philanthropic efforts are in that area," Box said.
She cited information from Lunch Break, which provides food and clothing to people in need, about the increasing reliance on charities, especially due to the poor economy.
In 2010, Lunch Break saw a 55 percent increase in demand for services; 112 percent for food pantry and an 84 percent increase for clothing. The demand continues to grow, she said.
"With our community kitchen, we'll serve healthy, nutritious food to a population that would like to provide their families with an opportunity to eat nutritious food, but don't have the economic resource," Box said. "We're excited."
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