Curry Club is a community meals project working to bring people together through food.
What is Curry Club?
Curry Club is collective of chefs, bakers and cooks, initially formed to provide meals, free of charge, for people in need. It has since morphed into an inclusive eating project working to break down social barriers through shared community meals.
Born in February 2021 during the second confinement, Curry Club began as a response to the sharp and growing demand for food packages in London which was alarmingly accelerated due to the economic impact of the pandemic. We aimed to bridge the gap between restaurants and food banks, because we figured that every person deserves the joy and comfort of being cooked for.
To start with, our meals were being sent out to vulnerable people who were either shielding and not able to cook during the pandemic, or simply for those who were struggling and for whom it may have simply allowed them the luxury of not cooking for a night. We quickly rounded up plenty of chefs who were furloughed and willing to help out.
Curry Club has since evolved into a community meals pop-up project. We provide three-course community meals with set tables and every other part of the restaurant experience to bring restaurant quality food to all. Our emphasis is on joyful cooking (and eating) and on inclusivity–and so we decided to address what is probably the biggest obstacle for many people to eating out–the financial transaction.
Why Curry?
We all share a great love and respect for curry. We want to use the concept of ‘curry’ in the broadest sense, encompassing all its vibrant and comforting forms, from India and South East Asia to the Caribbean and Britain.
Our inspiration comes from the way curry is often used to feed masses of people free of charge. In Sikh tradition, a ‘Langar’ kitchen not only provides free meals indiscriminately to people regardless of economic status, gender, or culture, it also relies on the work of volunteers who can join the cause regardless of who they are. This is just one of many examples of cultures where curry nourishes a community.
The ‘Pay What You Feel’ Model
SOME PAY, SOME DON’T, ALL WELCOME.
We have always felt that the gap between restaurants and the charity food sector has been unnecessarily huge. If food has such a power to break down social barriers why are we still using it to hold those barriers in place? Why should the magic of the restaurant experience be the reserve of those who can afford it? Curry Club’s current iteration is a love song to the restaurant, but it’s also a re-imagining of it. We wanted to create a place where the people of Hackney could all eat together; some pay, some don’t, and you wouldn’t be able to tell who was who. For us, the transactional nature of a standard restaurant limits the broad potential for what food and collective eating (and cooking) is and can be. So we have tried to remove the ‘obstacle’ that is the financial transaction using a ‘Pay What You Feel’ financial model. Payments can be made in a number of ways, using a QR code, in cash or card payment and there is a suggested amount for the meal itself. The system is explained on arrival and people are left to pay at their discretion as much or as little as they want. Payment, however big or small, is not a prerequisite to joining us for a meal.
Make a donation
All donations directly contribute to the distribution of meals by enabling us to buy ingredients, eco-packaging and pay for transportation.
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