By Michelle Talsma Everson and Alice Hafer

At Loving Hut Phoenix, customers sit in mid-century modern-style wooden chairs and dive into plant-based menu options, leaning elbows on the tables adorned with individual flower bouquets, while discussing . . . world peace.

At this restaurant, their mission is not just to provide nourishment and culinary charm, but, as their slogan reads, “Be Vegan Make Peace.” They strive toward world peace through manifold strategies. One is the option to order the Pay-it-Forward meal. When ordered, instead of a hot meal, one receives the knowledge that someone else gets to eat, arguably an equal sustenance.

Across Arizona, more than 1 million people experience food insecurity, according to the Arizona Food Bank Network. Nearly one in five Arizona children is affected.
Loving Hut takes those numbers personally.

For years, the local vegan restaurant has offered free fried rice to people who came in asking for a meal. As requests grew, so did the challenge of covering the cost. Nearly three years ago, Loving Hut created its Pay-it-Forward program, giving customers the chance to purchase a $10 meal for someone else.

The Pay-it-Forward program gave customers a way to help. Diners could purchase an extra meal for someone who needed one, allowing the restaurant to keep serving people without carrying the full cost alone.

Now, they’re stretching the Pay-It-Forward meal farther.
Loving Hut has partnered with Phoenix Feed a Neighbor, a grassroots organization that distributes groceries and other necessities through the 5830 Community Building.
On the last Sunday of each month, volunteers will pick up donated Pay-it-Forward meals from Loving Hut and distribute them through the 5830 Community space at 5830 N. 19th Ave. in Phoenix.

Growing the Pay-it-Forward Meal

For Linh La, operator of multiple Loving Hut locations in the Valley, the partnership feels like a natural next step.

“We were already feeding people who came into the restaurants, but we knew there were more people we weren’t reaching,” La says. “This gives us a way to get those meals out into the community.”

Before there was a formal program, the restaurant simply fed people who came in asking for help. But as demand increased, La says Loving Hut could no longer afford to cover every request on its own.

The partnership with Phoenix Feed a Neighbor takes that same idea into another part of the Valley.

Connecting with the Community

This idea started on social media.

Jameil’a Mitchell of The Healing Culture, who helped launch Phoenix Feed a Neighbor with Santio Wells, asked her Instagram community to recommend vegan-friendly restaurants that might be interested in helping.

Loving Hut customers started tagging the restaurant.

“People can get involved by supporting the restaurants that partner with us,” Mitchell says. “Right now, that means supporting Loving Hut while we continue building other partnerships.”

La connected with the group and visited the 5830 Community Building, where Brandi Caudell and volunteers distribute groceries and other supplies.
Across Arizona, food bank demand remains high, with Arizona Food Bank Network members serving more than 720,000 people monthly.

For La, seeing the work up close made the opportunity clear. Phoenix Feed a Neighbor was already helping people take groceries home, around 500 people a month. Loving Hut could add something immediate: a warm, prepared meal.

“We must work together at the grassroots to help this problem of food insecurity,” La says.
Mitchell says the group would also like to hear from other restaurants interested in getting involved. “We’re open to working with vegan restaurants or restaurants that offer vegan options,” she says.

Regular pickups are planned for the last Sunday of each month, with additional Wednesday pickups possible when meals and volunteers are available.

Small Acts, Shared Effort

For La, the partnership offers another way to reach people who may never walk into one of Loving Hut’s restaurants.

Food insecurity is too large a problem for one business or volunteer group to solve.
Someone pays for an extra meal. Loving Hut prepares it. A volunteer picks it up. A neighbor leaves with groceries and something warm to eat.

For La, that connection is the point.

“To see everyone walking in with nothing and walking out with boxes of groceries and a warm meal brings so much joy to my soul. We are very grateful to be a part of this program,” she says.

You Can Help

• Purchase a meal: Pay-it-Forward meals are $10 and can be purchased at participating Loving Hut locations or through Uber Eats, DoorDash and Grubhub.
• Help from anywhere: Supporters outside Arizona can contact Loving Hut through Instagram or at lovinghutarizona@gmail.com to help fund a meal.
• Donate supplies: Loving Hut donation bins are collecting clothing, shoes, hygiene products, first-aid supplies, towels, backpacks, blankets and other necessities for Phoenix Feed a Neighbor.
• Volunteer: Contact @thehealingculture_ on Instagram, thehealingculture369@gmail.com or theforsakenoutreach@gmail.com.