Welcome to the New Year fellow seekers! I am so excited about all of the amazing things that will come from this blog in 2016. I am blessed to have many supports and cannot wait to seek and share with you, even more, this year!
So, let’s get to it!
For my first brunch of the year, I headed to Uptown on Sunday to grab a solo bite. I headed to a restaurant that is not known for its elaborate weekend menu or high-priced cocktail lists, but for its mission: to serve great food and improve lives.
Inspiration Kitchen, is a non-profit restaurant that falls under the parent corporation, Inspiration Corporations. The company that focuses on essential job training for those affected by homelessness and poverty. The skills built through the kitchens, located in the Uptown and Garfield Park neighborhoods of Chicago, provides employment training, placement, and housing for those who are seeking self-sufficiency for their lives and for their families. The organization, over the last twenty years, has provided job training and vocational skills to over 2,500 individuals. That’s pretty amazing.
The small cafe in Uptown was pretty busy for a cold Sunday in the city. As I am such many of the other places were packed as well. It is, of course, the first Sunday of the new year, which meant everyone was eagerly trying to capture their moments of this “first” day and share them with the whole world. But I digress.
I was seated by Ann, the front-line manager who was filled with a happy spirit and tons of energy. Ann explained that many of the specials were already gone for the day. I really had my hopes on a pork dish listed on the winters special menu.
Darn!
I poked around to see what else I could try. No bacon and eggs for me, I can cook that at home. I opted on the crawfish omelet with house potatoes and a cup of green tea.
The food took a while, but I am always hesitant when a meal comes out too fast anyway. Everything was hot, fresh, and filling. Even though I was really hoping to have one of the brunch specials that day, Ann reassured me that some would be added to the regular menus soon and that I should come back on earlier on Sundays or Saturday mornings. Which, I definitely plan on doing!
Overall the experience was pretty good. It is an awe-inspiring way to have a great meal that satisfies for a moment but supports a mission that nourishes for a lifetime.
Check out either location in Garfield Park or Uptown for yourself. My recommendation is to check out the neighborhoods while you are there. Uptown is rich with cultural, and the observatory in Garfield Park is a definite must see year-around.
