As the Southern California wildfires burn for the fifth day today, chef José Andrés continues to set the standard for disaster response. His nonprofit, World Central Kitchen, partnered with fellow food-empowerment nonprofit the L.A. Kitchen to feed firefighters and fire evacuees. Yesterday, Andrés announced that they planned to distribute 2,000 meals. Throughout the day, he provided updates on those efforts.
Students at the L.A. Kitchen, which provides culinary training for parolees and at-risk youth, delivered 600 meals and 50 servings of organic baby food to a Red Cross family shelter at Oxnard College in Ventura County. According to the L.A. Kitchen founder Robert Egger, they made hundreds of sandwiches to distribute to first responders and displaced families.
600 meals & 50 servings of organic baby food at the @RedCrossLA Family shelter at Oxnard College. The Culinary students here at @TheLAKitchen are serving the meals & coordinating. GREAT Chefs to the rescue!!!...@WCKitchen pic.twitter.com/wVPgjKtktT
— José Andrés (@chefjoseandres) December 8, 2017
Andrés also invited chef Hugh Acheson to help out. The Georgia chef and Top Chef star asked on Twitter how he could legally serve hundreds of tacos to fire evacuees and first responders in the Ventura area. Andrés — who likely has more experience in this area than any other chef — told him to join World Central Kitchen and the L.A. Kitchen. No word yet on whether Acheson took him up on the offer.
So if I have the ability and food to serve tacos for 200 -300 people tomorrow around Ventura...where could I legally do that? Free food for fire evacuees and first responders. #CaliforniaFires
— hugh acheson (@HughAcheson) December 8, 2017
Yesterday morning, Andrés called for more volunteers, and later the in the day, he reiterated the need for people — chefs or not — to help the thousands displaced by the wildfires.
• @chefjoseandres [Twitter]
• @HughAcheson [Twitter]
• @robertegger [Twitter]
