At the Food for Good Café, Coffee Orders Support Community Wellness

Located on the first-floor lobby of Sherbourne Health, the Food for Good Café features hot espresso drinks and delicious baked goods for visitors. But the café isn’t your average spot to grab your morning joe. Every order at this new social enterprise makes a transformative impact on local food access and the health of our service users.

A Nourishing Menu That Centers Care

Sherbourne Health’s team of community dietitians consulted on the café menu, ensuring that customers could choose affordable, healthy food and drinks that meet their dietary needs. Community dietitian Jennifer Atkins says the space will also integrate nutrition education for community members, conveniently located by Sherbourne’s entrance.

The menu was also designed with social responsibility in mind. Nadjib Alamyar, Sherbourne Health’s senior program manager of Community Health and Capacity Building Initiatives, notes that ethical sourcing of ingredients was a priority for the café.

Serving Up Social Change

Alleviating financial strain is an essential ingredient for food security, which the cafe addresses by directly hiring from our communities. Through partners like Construct, this project has helped people who face employment barriers get hands-on training for working in construction. For service users interested in pursuing culinary and hospitality careers, the Sherbourne Health Apprenticeship Training Program offers kitchen training and employment as café attendants.

“Anything we can do to support individuals to earn consistent income is a win in the landscape of food security,” says Jennifer. “Approaching it from a capacity building angle rather than a charitable handout is sustainable and meaningful and we are proud to be a part of the transformation.”

The Food for Good Café is open from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. We hope you drop by on your next visit!

To learn more about the café and to see the menu, visit the Food for Good Café’s program page.