Chef JJ Johnson and his team at the rice-focused restaurant in Harlem cooked 30,000 meals for hospitals in upper Manhattan and the Bronx during the pandemic. Recognizing another need, they’ve followed up that work by partnering with Harlem Grown and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America to offer 27,000 meals and 2,300 produce boxes to those in need. Diners ordering shrimp bowls with green curry and sticky rice or a BBQ brisket bowl can also contribute to the restaurant’s efforts, which you can learn more about on Facebook.

Since the pandemic hit, the team at critical darling Adda has been making up to 1,500 meals a day for those in need. The restaurant’s also jumped to partner with a slew of nonprofit organizations during the COVID-19 crisis, including World Central Kitchen, NYuplift, and Urban Pathways. In addition, Adda created an option for diners to sponsor a care package for those working at a nearby hospital or community center for $10 a person.

Pivoting for the pandemic, Desi Galli now offers finish-at-home dishes for takeout and delivery, and features a DG Pantry selling items ranging from a chilli paneer meal kit to masala chickpeas to baking supplies. Besides satisfying her customers’ “hankering for Indian soul food,” owner PriaVanda Chouhan helps feed essential workers, volunteers her time mentoring and supporting women- and BIPOC-owned businesses, and donates food to the Boys & Girls Clubs of New York City. During the pandemic, “volunteers have come together, including myself, to help our neighbors through any struggle,” she says.

Lucas Sin, an Eater Young Gun alum, and his team at fast-casual favorite Junzi have kept a focus on community at their chain. In addition to feeding health care workers and staff at local nonprofits like the Center for Urban Community Service, Junzi launched Pantry Essentials and donated a month’s worth of its earnings to nonprofits fighting inequality and food insecurity. There’s always something going on here, so check Junzi’s Facebook page to stay updated.

Community work is nothing new for the team at this California-inspired Soho restaurant. The restaurant has a longstanding relationship with the Robin Hood Foundation, and a portion of sales benefit The Door, which offers hospitality training to young New Yorkers. During the pandemic, owner Camilla Marcus co-founded Relief Opportunities for All Restaurants, or ROAR, which raised more than $1 million for restaurant relief. About her own restaurant, she says: “We are committed to engaging meaningfully in order to support our community, and those beyond, as best we can, while always maintaining the safety of our team and our guests as the ultimate priority.” Earlier in the pandemic, her team also paired up with Melanie Dunea on #treatshelp, which donated hundreds of sweets to essential workers. Today, the team is supplying food to community fridges for protestors and others in need.

“We started getting involved in relief meals right away,” explains Bessou owner Maiko Kyogoku. The Japanese comfort food restaurant started their work with the nonprofit Off Their Plate, cooking 700 to 900 meals weekly for health care workers. As the summer continued, they transitioned to working with Project Bento and Heart of Dinner to provide meals like soba noodles and pork belly miso stew to members of the homebound elderly Asian community.

During tough times, the team at Chinatown favorite Golden Diner has worked on numerous projects that give back, from a local raffle in collaboration with Welcome to Chinatown to an auction for a private party in 2021, when the world will hopefully be a safer place. These initiatives have raised funds for The Okra Project, Black Voters Matter, and other nonprofits. The team is also working with Off Their Plates, which provided meals to health care workers early in the pandemic and is now making meals for the food-insecure.

Eater Young Gun alum Francesca Chaney and her team at Sol Sips split their time between operating the plant-based restaurant and running the mutual aid initiative Black Supper. Two Sundays a month, the team prepares meals for the Black community — distributing food, beverages, and seeds to plant from the restaurant’s home base in Bushwick, and at vigils and protests.

Down the block and across the street from his first restaurant, Olmsted, Baxtrom has opened Maison Yaki to Black food and beverage professionals for the Black Entrepreneur Series. “Someone out there needs good PR,” Baxtrol told us. “I can just give a restaurant to these talented individuals that are overlooked, quite frankly.” Every couple of weeks, someone new takes over the space to host a pop-up. Recent editions include one from chef Jared Howard of Honey Bunny’s Chicken. His menu featured biscuits, oyster mushroom po’ boys, and, as the name would imply, chicken. Pickup is available at the restaurant’s to-go window.