Page 31 - MENU Magazine - March/April 2018
P. 31

 The Canadian Press/Fred Lum
Newcomer Kitchen
Launched in 2016, Newcomer Kitchen brings Syrian refugee women into the
kitchen at the Depanneur, a small venue for culinary pop-ups in downtown
Toronto. Each week, six to eight women cook traditional Middle Eastern fare for sale
in “the Dep” and online. Len Senater is the force behind the program. He started the Dep seven years ago as a way to showcase culinary talent and do pop-up events.
“I was interested in the phenomenon of pop-up dining, but I thought that there was a lack of creativ- ity because the  nancial barrier to entry was so high,” says Senater. “I had this idea that if I created a small venue that had everything you needed to host a pop-up, you could invite a much greater diversity of people to cook, and the events would be more a ordable, and you could bring a much more diverse group of people to eat.”
Newcomer Kitchen evolved, quite simply, from an act of welcoming.
“When I  rst heard of the Syrian refugee families, many of them were stuck in hotels for weeks or months at a time, where they had no kitchens at all,” says Senater. “It wasn’t much of a stretch for me, as a small gesture of hospitality, to extend an invitation to come use our kitchen.”
Senater says they pretty much sell out every week. The pro ts go directly to the cooks.
“When we started, the women were still in hotels being processed,” says Senater. “We found a way to make them feel welcome and participate, to be part of a positive narrative about their country. We were able to give them a sense of optimism about what this new place might hold for them.”
Now the Dep is receiving calls from around the world from venues that want to launch something similar. Says Senater: “I think the potential of the idea is bigger than just the tiny Depanneur, so we incorporated the Newcomer Kitchen as a nonpro t organization. Navigating the world of nonpro ts has proved more di cult than running the program itself.”
As to how others can get involved in this and similar ventures, Senater says the Dep is always looking for industry partners and collaborators. “We want to work closely with the people who do know how
to make a go of this,” he says. “There’s so much kitchen space that’s dark for some portion of the week. There’s a capacity that this project can tap into to bring these spaces to life, not only bringing attention to the host, but also support to these communities. I wanted to help. I asked myself what I could do with what I have. Well, I have a kitchen...” m
thedepanneur.ca
“I had this idea that if I created a small venue that had everything you needed to host a pop-up, you could invite a much greater diver- sity of people to cook, and the events would be more affordable, and you could bring a much more diverse group of people to eat.”
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