At lunchtime today I was one of the servers- there was a constant flow of guests so we servers were kept very busy. Ealing Soup Kitchen has a new cooker but the ventilation needs connecting so it can’t be used yet - too risky for kitchen volunteers!
So lunch today was a selection of salads which received a mixed reception. Some of the guests - and volunteers (including me) - loved the meal but several were clearly missing their hot lunch. Clearly cous cous with pasta and pesto salads are not to everyone’s taste. Hopefully next week will see a return to normal service!

I was back on the tea and coffee service at Ealing Soup Kitchen today. In spite of it being a very warm day, tea and coffee was in great demand. Plus the biscuits of course. And the cereals that we started providing last year are very popular - there’s a good selection of cornflakes, Cheerios, Weetabix, Rice Krispies amongst others. Guests then moved on to the Snow Cones for something a bit cooler!

I stayed on at the Soup Kitchen for the lunch service where I helped serve then moved on to clearing and washing up. Chef Arul cooked an amazing chicken curry with a paneer vegetarian alternative (I tried the latter and it was delicious). Despite a slow start to the morning we served over one hundred hungry clients with takeaways also available. As always it was hard work but lovely to be there and see how much the guests enjoyed their meals.

Back at the Soup Kitchen and a session in the tea station for me today. We didn’t have the queues of last week but there was a steady flow of guests coming through. The addition of cereal is very popular and this morning there were chocolate eclairs which went like hot cakes!

I joined an extremely busy lunch shift at Ealing Soup Kitchen today. It was Chef Nigel’s first time being in charge in the kitchen - with over one hundred guests - and his meal was a massive hit. There was a paprika chicken dish with rice or vegetarian alternative - and the clients loved it. A shortage of volunteers meant I was moving between serving lunch, clearing tables and helping with the washing up. But it was all worth it to see the smiles and get such positive feedback from the clients 😊

It was great to back at Ealing Soup Kitchen after a couple of months away. There was a large queue when doors opened at 11am and it seemed that everyone wanted a drink. I helped out with the drinks service for a while then went into the kitchen when it got quieter. After their hot drinks, clients moved on to the Snow Cones machine which proved very popular. And of course I had to try it for myself - it was most welcome in a hot kitchen 😊