Community Feed: Local chefs put their best food forward for those who need it most

Delbert Briggs has been getting some quality help out at the WestTown Day Shelter kitchen the last couple of months with visits from chef Kevin Lee and his crew from The Social Order Dining Collective and chef Andrew Eskridge from 84 Hospitality.

No kitchen manager in town faces the challenges Delbert does feeding between 400 and 500 of Oklahoma City's homeless population five days a week with donated food. Pile on top of that limited resources to hire staff, which means the kitchen leans heavily on volunteers.

So, when local chefs bring in a full kitchen crew and fresh ingredients, Delbert's easy smile gleams a little brighter.

Lee and his crew from the Social Collective, which includes The Jones Assembly, Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, Seven47 and Texadelphia, were in the house serving fried chicken, sweet potatoes, cole slaw, and a cornbread bread pudding with caramel sauce. Lee said he had just tested out the dessert in an international food show in Berlin the week before.

It was a hit in Berlin, and it was certainly a hit at WestTown.

This wasn't Lee's first trip to the day shelter kitchen. In fact, he was there the day Turning the Table on Hunger launched back in 2015 and his mentor chef Kurt Fleischfresser was in charge.

"Feeding the hungry is what touches me the most," Lee said. "Nobody should go hungry. Everybody should be able to get a good meal whenever they need it. Being hungry affects you more way than one. It wears on you mentally, it wears on you physically until you can't do anything anymore."

Then just last week, Eskridge brought in a huge contingent of volunteers from 84 Hospitality’s properties, which include Empire Slice House, Easy E’s, Goro Ramen, Revolucion, Ponyboy and soon-arriving Gun Sushi and Izakaya.

Among the volunteers with 84 Hospitality were company president Rachel Cope and Eskridge's father, Bob. Others included Ryan Goodman, David Rackley, Brandon Wess and Siara Walden. Able Blakely, owner of Savory Spice Shoppe, joined the kitchen, too, bringing his serious meat-smoking skills to share with guests.

The throng of volunteers produced a whole mess of food, including fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy, pulled pork sandwiches and salad. It was enough for a couple of services, which definitely sustains the sparkle in Delbert's eye.

The chicken was all fried fresh that morning and Blakely smoked the pork overnight the day before. The aroma was enough to draw folks in from a gorgeous spring day to form a line as far as the eye could see.

Cope told me her company is dedicated to giving back to the community with the same ferocity they offer hospitality at their restaurants.

"Giving back is what it's all about," she said as she dug her gloved hands into a tub of salad to dress it.

On the subject of of giving, the Homeless Alliance is a prime target for your donations.

Delbert told me he can always use donations of coffee and sugar, but right now his pantry is running low on dry pasta, and large No. 10-size canned goods.

Communications director Kinsey Crocker told me ponchos, socks, foot powder, sunscreen, insect repellent and allergy medicine are in demand this spring.

"The rainy season can be pretty miserable for folks who are living outside or walking as their primary mode of transportation," she said.

Kinsey was happy to report another profound act of charity made by the Muslim Women for Humanity.

"They are back for their third annual Meals by Muslim’s initiative," she said. "Muslims abstain primarily from food and drink during the daylight hours during the month of Ramadan. So the Oklahoma Muslim Women for Humanity have decided they will channel this acute sense of hunger into helping those in the community who are always hungry and experience food insecurity."

Ramadan began May 5 and until June 4, these women will help purchase food for the day shelter and volunteer to serve lunch.

I happen to hear about a couple of random acts of charity from chef Josh Valentine, who has agreed to donate pork to the Homeless Alliance, and Bobby Sloan of Acosta Foodservice, who was able to facilitate the donation of a large amount of beef.

Finally, don't miss the State of Homelessness address at Tower Theatre, 425 NW 23 St., on June 4 at 4 p.m. Homeless Alliance Executive Director Dan Staughan will make remarks and the Homeless Alliance will release results of the annual "Count."

Speakers include Mayor David Holt and Deborah Jenkins, Oklahoma's executive director of the state Housing Finance Agency.

If you just want to make a donation or learn more about volunteer opportunities, go online to homelessalliance.org.