Chef José Andrés was among the first to close all of his restaurants in several different cities in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
On March 17th, he reopened six of them in Washington as "community kitchens" in conjunction with his disaster relief organization, World Central Kitchen. The locations are open from 12 to 5 p.m. daily and serve meals out of side doors and patios at reduced prices. Free meals are also available for those who can't pay, and paying customers also have the option to donate meals as well. The locations have employed options for no-contact ordering and pay using Paypal and GoTab.
Andrés and WCK have been on the front line for weeks providing hot meals for anyone impacted by the Covid-19 crisis. Not only is Andrés doing this now, his nonprofit also made food for those quarantined on cruise ships in Japan and California. The group is also working with other nonprofits to deliver food to school kids and families in need.
Speaking to reporters, Andrés said,
"My city will be fed. Our people will be fed. If I’m overreacting, fine. But if something doesn’t go as we think it’s going and goes worse, you’ll see us."
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