UK Pop-Up Restaurant Serves Nothing But Salvaged Food Waste

Nope, it's not a Portlandia parody: A UK group collectively known as the Real Junk Food Project has set up a pop-up cafe in Bristol, England featuring a menu created entirely with "intercepted food waste." ABC News reports the Bristol Skipchen ("skipping" is apparently the British equivalent of the phrase "dumpster diving") opened late last month as the country's first "waste cafe." In addition to food salvaged from the trash, the cafe uses surplus food from local food banks and restaurants, and accepts donations of food that would "otherwise go to waste." (Owners note that all meat donations must come in sealed packages to prevent contamination.)

"We're proving every day, every time someone puts a fork in their mouth, that this food is edible," one of the cafe's volunteer workers tells ABC. Recent menu items include crabshelled prawn salad; banana, potato, and coconut curry (vegan, naturally); and salmon filets with watercress. According to the Real Junk Food manifesto, all dishes are served for a "pay what you like" fee in an effort to "be as inclusive and democratic as possible."

A similar project by the Real Junk Food group fed a total of 2,888 people after popping up in Leeds in June of last year. The Bristol Skipchen will be open through December.