Fork and Spoon
Have you ever had a particularly disappointing meal? Or been so hungry that it affected your mood? Now, has it happened because you couldn’t afford the meal you wanted? Fork and Spoon operates with a pay-what-you-can model to ensure that no member of the community faces this problem. Every day, approximately 85 people visit Fork and Spoon to dissuade their hunger with scratch-made, locally sourced and inspired meals. There’s a new menu every week. After one customer’s son passed away, he started coming nearly every day because “the staff knows me by name, it’s my social interaction, the food keeps getting better, and the price is right.” A pay-what-you-can model ensures that the price is right for every customer.
Dignity drives the concept. Every aspect, from sourcing to décor to the people, revolves around respect for the community and what it has to offer. By partnering with the food bank to utilize reclaimed and donated food, Fork and Spoon can exclusively buy local proteins and support farmers in purchasing excess or unsold produce. Volunteers of all backgrounds serve dishes ranging from elk lasagna to Moroccan chicken and apricot tagine. Diana, a loved and recognized customer, postponed her doctorate to become a therapeutic foster parent, and eventually adopting seven siblings. For her, Fork and Spoon is the “saving grace” for family dinner time, treating the kids to their choice of meal options. Each one of our customers has a story. Through high-quality and consistently available food, Fork and Spoon gives the space for every person to move with dignity through their story.
However, it is difficult to run any restaurant, especially on a donation basis. Seventy-five percent of customers are unable to pay for their meals. Fork and Spoon relies heavily on the generosity of Gallatin Valley to participate. Have dinner, consider paying not only for your meal, but for someone you’re sharing the dining room with. Use Fork and Spoon for your meeting space, your catering, your weekly volunteer spot. Going out of your normal routine could be the reason why someone can go back to theirs.