Angels Dine Out Fundraiser Helps Feed the Hungry | SantaFe.com
People gathered at a restaurant posing.

Angels Dine Out is coming on April 20, 2023!

More than 1,800,000 meals delivered to nearly 8,000 clients by 4,000 volunteers. Wow! This is noble work done for more than three decades by one of Santa Fe’s beloved nonprofits, Kitchen Angels. The organization started in 1992. Three friends, Tony D’Agostino, Anna Huserik, and Aleise Sargent, realized that many homebound neighbors had no source for regular nourishing meals when they needed them most. The concerned threesome’s idea was fully embraced by the community, succeeding far beyond anyone’s expectations. The need for Kitchen Angels’ services, though, has continued to grow exponentially.

The meals, prepared by teams of volunteers, are commendable. These are dishes any of us would be happy to have shared with us. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner come loaded with fresh produce and breads baked in-house, and are always packaged beautifully. Delivery comes with a smile and kind words.

THE BIG EVENT: Angels Dine Out! Women outside restaurant pointing towards sign for Angels Dine Out.

Thursday, April 20, 2023, is Kitchen Angels’ 24th annual Angels Dine Out fundraiser. Participation’s as easy as pie. You go out to eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner — or maybe all three — at one of the 40+ participating restaurants. That’s it. You pay your bill as you normally would. Then the restaurants give a whopping 25% of the meals’ sales to Kitchen Angels. This is major, folks.

I’ve found a delightful sense of camaraderie among the diners at the meals I’ve booked in previous years. Each restaurant has a host from Kitchen Angels to thank you for your role in helping out folks much less fortunate.

THE RESTAURANTS

Some families, or groups of friends, make an annual tradition out of picking where they’re going to go eat. There’s something for every taste and budget. Restaurants like Café Pasqual’s and 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar have participated nearly every one of the two dozen years of Angels Dine Out.

Café Fina, Pecos Trail Café, Posa’s Tamale Factory and Restaurant, and both Plaza Café Downtown and Southside will donate proceeds from breakfast , lunch, and dinner.

Chile Rellenos at Maria's could be your dining choice for Angel's Dine Out.
Chile Rellenos at Maria’s could be your dining choice for Angel’s Dine Out.

Think barbecue at Cowgirl and The Ranch House, green chile cheeseburgers at Santa Fe Bite, or steak tacos at Bourbon Grill. Don’t forget a side of their spinach cheese balls. Speaking of sides, you can get one of Santa Fe’s legendary views along with lunch at Museum Hill Café. Windows play a big part of the experience at the glass jewel box, Cafecito, where Argentinian specialties will transport you to South America. Experience great views with imaginative fare too from Opuntia and Skyfire at Bishop’s Lodge.

You might go New Mexican green and red at Estevan or Café Castro. There’s Mexican at Paloma Restaurant and Mariscos Costa Azul, steak at Palace Prime, Japanese izakaya at Izanami, Spanish tapas at La Boca, and Afro-Caribbean at Jambo Café. How about Indian, with more southern specialties at Paper Dosa, or northern featured at India House? You can opt for Italian at Andiamo!, Piccolino, Pranzo Italian Grill, and Rustica Fresh Italian Kitchen. Santa Fe Dining group has joined up in a big way with La Casa Sena, Maria’s New Mexican Kitchen, Hidden Mountain Brewing, and Rooftop Pizzeria & Draft Station all participating. Local beer can also accompany a meal at Second Street Brewing’s Rufina Tap Room.

Other big-hearted restaurants helping out on the big day include Joe’s Dining, El Nido, Horno Restaurant, Tune Up Café, TerraCotta Wine Bistro, and Herve Wine Bar.

This year, for the first time, several bars are offering specialty drinks. Stop by for a pre-dinner drink or a nightcap. Santa Fe Spirits Downtown Tasting Room and Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery will serve up special cocktail menus, and Santa Fe Brewing’s HQ will offer its 7K IPA. A boutique, Artisan’s Bottega, is participating too, with their Italian food specialties.

KITCHENALITY

Try oysters at 315 for Angels Dine Out.
Try oysters at 315 for Angels Dine Out.

Kitchen Angels has several other culinary-related fundraising projects too, among them their retail resale shop, Kitchenality. Have you discovered it yet, in the same Siler Road building as the organization’s offices and kitchen? I’m always looking for kitchen and tableware. I entertain a lot. Also, I’m forever organizing photo shoots for cookbooks, magazine articles, and social media. This is my go-to place before buying anything new. The volunteers go to great lengths to organize and arrange the merchandise artfully. You might find old silver, a cool cookbook, or a new juicer or Instant Pot that never made it out of the box before being re-homed. I especially like stopping in before holidays. It’s easy to pick up a few items to jazz up my existing seasonal décor.

OTHER WAYS TO BE AN ANGEL

You can make a direct financial contribution on the website or bring gently used kitchenware or tableware to the Kitchenality shop. The organization welcomes donations of produce from local growers, and can make use of other pro bono services like advertising and computer support. They can always use volunteers willing to work in the kitchen — prepping, cooking, packaging — or drivers, or retail staff for Kitchenality.

Kitchen Angels
1222 Siler Road, Santa Fe
505-471-7780
Kitchenangels.org

2023 Angels Dine Out: Thursday, April 20

Cheryl Jamison photo by Stephanie CameronStory and photos by Cheryl Alters Jamison.

Four-time James Beard Foundation Book Award-winning author Cheryl Alters Jamison is the host of Heating It Up on KTRC and is now the “queen of culinary content” for SantaFe.com. Find new stories about the Santa Fe food scene each week on SantaFe.com.

Read Cheryl Alters Jamison’s bio here!
This article was posted by Cheryl Fallstead

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