Restaurant owner’s food drop initiative helps struggling Melbournians

Victoria’s second lockdown has seen more and more Melbournians struggle to put food on the table.

However, one city restaurant owner has come up with a plan to help feed those who are struggling.

Alan Chong, owner of Tiān38 on Flinders Lane, noticed just how many people have been put in a position where they can’t feed themselves or their families: people such as out of work chefs, staff members who are ineligible for JobKeeper or JobSeeker, and also international students.  

“I realised there must be heaps more people in a similar situation,” says Chong. “So I started thinking about ways we could help.”

On 25 July, Mr Chong organised a food drop off at his restaurant.

Thirty meals were prepared as he spread the word on social media.

By that evening, Mr Chong had a queue of people outside his restaurant that was much larger than anticipated. Sixty meals ended up being prepared that night, twice the number than originally expected. 

The following weeks saw Mr Chong organise more food drops and a GoFundMe page was set up to help cover the costs of what has now become a weekly food drop.

In the first three weeks the campaign raised $7,885, leading to the restaurant being able to prepare 300 meals as well as care packages containing food and essential supplies.

“Every week I’m in a bit of shock because of the magnitude of people that need to be helped, and the response from the community. It’s great to see the community rally but it’s a sad situation that we’re trying to combat,” he says.

According to Mr Chong, many of the food drop customers hold international visas and aren’t eligible for social welfare. They are afraid to return to their home countries due to high COVID numbers in their respective homelands.

“We need to raise awareness that there are lots of people who are falling through the cracks and they need our support. This is not a one-restaurant solution.”

The Omi restaurant is collaborating with Mr Chong to provide extra meals for a food drop this week. Omi can’t operate out of their  QV premises, but by working together with Mr Chong, they will be able to increase the amount of meals and the frequency of the meal distribution.

“Customers can’t dine in anymore but we still want to serve people in some shape or form,” Chong says. “That’s the crux of hospitality.”

To support this initiative, concerned citizens can donate to the GoFundMe page here.