An upcoming event will benefit Mind the Bar, and organization that helps Vancouver’s hospitality industry workers manage mental health issues and workplace harassment. Photo: Restaurant server/Shutterstock
Scrolling picture-perfect Instagram feeds touting "wellness" products and mantras may reinforce some buzzwords, but for many working in the hospitality industry in Vancouver, mental health is a serious and every day matter.
In order to elevate the conversation that's sprung up about mental illness in the city's restaurant and bar biz, 11 Vancouver chefs have banded together to cook for a crowd at an upcoming fundraiser event that will be the first in a series with a shared purpose.
Kitchen Aide Vol. 1 will take place on Monday, November 18 at Café Medina, and will feature 11 dishes prepared by top Vancouver chefs, including Bryan Satterford (Juke, Beetbox), Phil Scarfone (Nightingale), and Lindsey Mann (DL Chicken Shack, DownLow Burgers).
Proceeds from Kitchen Aide will benefit Mind the Bar Foundation, which is "a mental health resource, information and support system, and community hub designed for the hospitality industry, that focuses on the major issues of depression, anxiety, addiction and workplace harassment."
“I feel the hospitality industry is one of the most important industries we have in a world gone digital - and yet it’s treated in such an unsustainable way,” says Mann, co-owner of East Vancouver’s DL Chicken Shack and DownLow Burgers.
“There are so many things that need to be addressed and on the forefront is wage, hours, and addiction all culminating in challenges to quality of life and mental health. It’s going to take a whole industry to come together for change and all lovers of food to support but what better way than the most familiar thing we love and need - conversation and food.”
Here is the full list of chefs participating in Kitchen Aide Vol. 1:
- Rhys Amber, Big Day BBQ
- Colin Johnson, St. Lawrence
- Ash Kurtz, St. Lawrence
- Claire Lassam, Livia Sweets and Bakery
- Justin Lee, formerly Crowbar
- Lindsey Mann, DL Chicken Shack, DownLow Burgers
- Danny McGee, Au Comptoir
- Alex Ploughman, Legends Haul
- Bryan Satterford, Juke and Beetbox
- Phil Scarfone, Nightingale
- Chris Scott, formerly Cinara
- Colin Staus, Big Day BBQ
- Edie Steens, formerly Cinara and now Trans Am
- Gus Stieffenhofer Branson, Published
All chefs are donating their time to this important cause. Most produce and ingredients are donated. In addition, guests will have the opportunity to bid on special silent auction items from local restaurants, purveyors, and distributors.
Kitchen Aide Vol. 1
When: Monday, November 18 at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Café Medina - 780 Richards Street, Vancouver
Cost: Tickets are $100 each and available via Eventbrite.
