SUPPORT SYSTEM: VANCOUVER RESTAURANTS SHOW SOLIDARITY, URGE DINERS TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING LOCAL COMMUNITY THROUGH ‘BREAKING BREAD’ INITIATIVE

Restaurants Create Limited-Time-Only Menus, Suggest Other Ways of Supporting Small and Independent Businesses Affected by COVID-19

Vancouver restaurants represented: Café Medina, Juke Fried Chicken, Beetbox, L’Abattoir, Havana, Belgard Kitchen, Wildebeest, Nuba, Heritage Asian Eatery, Origo Club.

Members of Vancouver’s hospitality community are uniting in solidarity to urge the public’s support of the local independent restaurant and service industry as well as those whose livelihoods rely on them, by offering myriad ways to show support during this unprecedented time of COVID-19.

Comprising 23 local restaurants and counting, this newly formed collective wants to reassure the public that they remain committed to doing everything possible to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of their guests and staff. They will continue to implement all guidelines set out by such regulatory bodies as Vancouver Coastal Health, the World Health Organization and Centres for Disease Control.

If people are not able to dine in person at their local restaurants, a few ways in which they can show their support are as follows:

• • Order delivery from local restaurants
  • Pick-up your order via take-out
  • Purchase gift cards
  • Subscribe to digital newsletters
  • Engage on social media
  • Share photos on social media
  • Write a positive online review
  • Be kind!

For those who remain healthy and are comfortable with dining out, the group of restaurants is showing appreciation to guests for their support by extending a limited-time-only Breaking Bread Menu available from March 14 to 31 at special price points of $20, $30 and $40. Some of the restaurants have also pledged to dedicate funds from the proceeds of these menus towards internal financial initiatives to support their staff.

The list of restaurants in Vancouver participating is as follows, with additional establishments invited to join the initiative on an ongoing basis:

Juke Fried Chicken
L’Abattoir
Lucky Taco
Nuba Kitsilano
Nuba Gastown
Nuba Mt. Pleasant
Nuba Yaletown
Origo Club
Pourhouse
Tuc
Wildebeest

“We are continuing to take all necessary precautions and urge people to show their support for small business as much as they’re able to right now,” says James Iranzad, Co-Owner of Gooseneck Hospitality, which owns and operates Wildebeest, Bells and Whistles, Bufala (Kerrisdale and Edgemont) and Lucky Taco. “We want people to understand that by supporting their favourite restaurants, they also support the people who depend on them — from chefs, cooks and servers to suppliers, farmers and delivery people. We’re all in it together.”

As this is a developing initiative, all details, including participating restaurants and menus, will be updated on an ongoing basis at www.breakingbreadvan.com and #breakingbreadvan. Restaurants interested in joining this initiative are invited to email breakingbreadvan@gmail.com.

As the news is changing rapidly, the group of restaurants have committed to monitor and reassess the situation as it unfolds, and make any adjustments if necessary.