A Clifton Heights restaurant is lending a hand to its neighbors again this holiday season. For the fourth year in a row, Good Plates Eatery will pass out free Thanksgiving and Christmas meals to anyone interested, no questions asked.
“There is no charge, no questions, no reason needed. Just show up, let us know how many meals you need and you’ll be on your way,” Good Plates owner Andrew Schlanser told CityBeat.
Good Plates will be passing out the meals at their restaurant on Wednesday, Nov. 22 starting at noon. Schlanser says they’re planning to serve 2,000 meals for Thanksgiving and another 2,000 for Christmas but will increase the number for Christmas if needed. Each meal comes with roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, stuffing and bread.
“Everything is packed individually in a microwaveable container and bagged up together. It’s also served warm for anyone who wants to eat it immediately,” Schlanser said.
Good Plates began its free holiday meal program in 2020 and has seen it grow exponentially since.
“From even before we opened, my wife Jamie and I knew we wanted to help and be a part of the community and had something along these lines planned from the start,” Schlanser told CityBeat. “When COVID was still going strong during the holiday season of 2020, we wanted somewhere for people that couldn’t travel home, or didn’t want to cook, or just needed a meal. We didn’t really know what to expect. I think we passed out around 30 meals during Thanksgiving and another 50 during Christmas. Our name being Good Plates Eatery has a few meanings, but the doing good part is something that we’ve always wanted and to be a part of the restaurant.”
And lot of planning and donations from Good Plates’ distributors and the community go into making the free meals possible. Schlanser said he began reaching out to some suppliers to request food and supply donations in late September and early October, as well as began coordinating volunteers, working with local media outlets and launching a social media campaign.
Schlanser’s wife Jamie also creates a retail area at the restaurant where she makes candles, hot chocolate mixes, room sprays and other handmade goods to help raise the funds for the meals. Then comes the actual cooking part.
“We start cooking that Monday prior, mostly the chicken. And then the night before, I will start all of the sides. Basically, work into the evening, take a small break and then am back around 5 a.m. to finish cooking and prepare the setup,” said Schlanser.
He also says the meals wouldn’t be possible without the generosity of others, whether it be through donations, volunteering or just spreading the word.
“I’d just like to say thank you to everyone that helps make this possible: our staff, the volunteers, US Foods and GT Industrial for donations of food and supplies, all of the people that send money, people in the news media that continually help us year in and year out, Jordan Brooks of The JoBro Foundation and Noam Barnard of CCS that help us get meals out to people in the community that aren’t able to make it in and Chad Zellner from Rolling Rye who makes and donates all the bread.”
Good Plates Eatery is located at 235 W McMillan St. More info: goodplateseatery.com.
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