The restaurant usually has enough to provide at least 10 to 15 boxes of small sets of meals
Dubai - The owner of the restaurant said his team also pack the excess food and distribute it amongst the needy.
Published: Wed 29 Mar 2017, 1:50 PM
Updated: Wed 29 Mar 2017, 2:36 PM
- By
- Sarwat Nasir
A Dubai restaurant is welcoming unemployed residents and job seekers to "enjoy a free meal" at their venue in Business Bay.
The Wokman, a Chinese restaurant, has a sign in front of their door that says they "understand times are tough" and unemployed people are welcome to indulge in a free meal.
The owner of the restaurant, Dillon Daryanani, said his team also pack the excess food and distribute it amongst the needy.
"Not only do we provide food as a day-to-day restaurant to our customers, our owners' other focus is to provide the needy and the people who matter in Dubai. We first offer the unemployed a free meal whenever they come into our restaurant. We have faced these issues in life and we are ready to give back in whatever way or form. Lucky for us, we have been able to reach out and help so many unemployed," Daryanani said.
"On top of that, whatever we make in excess (rice, vegetables, chicken), we will package into small boxes and hand them out to nearby construction sites, or building staff and security personnel. We know all these people work hard for their earnings, and sometimes we like to give them the food as a reward on the great work they do."
He said that the restaurant usually has enough to provide at least 10 to 15 boxes of small sets of meals to the needy, however, they make sure that at least one box is handed out every day. Daryanani said that other restaurants should also look into using their excess food to help those who desperately need it.
"This kind of initiative should be mandatory. At no point do we think we are doing favours. We make food for all our customers. It just does not come to our heart to throw away excess food that remains. We'd rather package that food and give it to who we think needs it or has worked hard for it."
"Again, restaurants should look at where the world is now, and how important every resource it. How can we use it, reuse it - in our case it's food. When you make five more plates of rice, then give it away, don't throw it in the bin," he said.
sarwat@khaleejtimes.com