Jon Bon Jovi Opens Ground-Breaking ‘Pay What You Can’ Soul Kitchen

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I’ve always been a fan of Jon Bon Jovi – his music, his concert booty shaking and most importantly, his philanthropy!

Just when I think he can’t outdo himself, Jon surprises me and one ups everything and everyone else. This time, the singer has opened a restaurant featuring healthy foods and which allows customers to “pay what you can.” Jon explained, “When I learned that one in six people in this country goes to bed hungry, I thought this was the next phase of the (Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation’s) work.”

“At a time when one in five households are living at or below the poverty level, and at a time when one out of six Americans is food insecure, this is a restaurant whose time has come. This is a place based on and built on community – by and for the community.”

Called The Jon Bon Jovi Soul Kitchen, the new digs are located in Red Bank, New Jersey with a goal to provide low-income families with healthy alternatives to inexpensive fast food. For its October 19 grand opening, the menu included crusted catfish with red beans and rice, grilled chicken breast with homemade basil mayo and rice pilaf, and grilled salmon with soul seasonings, sweet potato mash and sauteed greens. 
“This is not a soup kitchen,” Jon said. “You can come here with the dignity of linens and silver, and you’re served a healthy, nutritious meal. This is not burgers and fries.”

To eat there, one can pay whatever amount they can afford or, better yet, volunteer for the restaurant or the local food bank.

But don’t go to the Soul Kitchen expecting to see The Man doing any of the cooking, though you may just catch Jon doing something behind the scenes. “I’m an expert at washing dishes,” Jon explains, “but I can cook less than zero … But picture the coolest brasserie in your hometown, that’s what this is. It’s the hottest-looking restaurant in this town.”

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