The restaurant and food service training program provides opportunities for at-risk Portlanders
At the corner of a busy downtown business, there is an effort underway to create new careers.
That’s the idea behind Stone Soup PDX.
Founders Ronit and Craig Gerard told Street Roots they “like food and like helping people,” but the well-prepared lunch is not all that is offered. Stone Soup seeks to make a greater impact on Portland.
“When we started meeting folks around town, we quickly realized there are places to go get food, and that’s not quite what Portland needs,” said Craig Gerard. “Feeding people is great … but wasn’t going to have the impact that we were looking to have.”
The impact occurs through a 12-week program described as “the path to self-reliance.” Program participants, Gerard said, are taught life skills, culinary skills and customer service. Upon completion of the program, participants have access to an exclusive job placement network.
“For me it comes down to the day of graduation,” Gerard said. “When our program participants will have gone through a fairly rigorous and difficult 12-week class. There’s blood and sweat for sure and tears probably on my part. They are taking a step to a new career and new life.”
Stone Soup PDX operates out of the historic Sengstake Building at 306 NW Broadway, a 105-year-old structure that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Inside the first-floor dining area are chairs donated by the program’s sponsors from the food service industry – including Marriott, Irving Street Kitchen, New Seasons Market and Voodoo Donuts. These sponsors have committed to considering hiring graduates.
John Williamson sat in one of those chairs as he told Street Roots why he was in the program.
“I’m trying to learn to get my chef skills up to par so I can get a proper job,” Williamson said.
The 56-year-old man also has a record. He is currently on parole for grand theft.
“Portland didn’t get me arrested; I got myself arrested,” he said. “When my mother was sick, I chose the wrong path to support an old woman who was dying.”
Williamson said he was busted for a string of shoplifting charges involving gift cards.
“I discovered I could shoplift and sell gift cards and get myself by in a good money-making way, and in the end, it did nothing except ruin my life.”
On parole, Williamson saw a flyer for Stone Soup Kitchen PDX and decided to give the Gerards a call. He had just finished dishwashing duties when he spoke to Street Roots.
“Right now I do the dishes, tomorrow I’ll be prepping, and the next day it’s who knows what,” Williamson said. “Every day, it’s a little something different back there.”
Through the dining room windows, one can observe the daily routines and traffic patterns at this intersection of Portland’s Old Town and Pearl neighborhoods.
Ronit Gerard said Stone Soup Kitchen PDX serves two distinct communities. While drawing resources from organizations such as Central City Concern and Southeast Works, Stone Soup is attracting paying customers from upscale Pearl District.
“We’re bridging a gap,” said Ronit, noting the kitchen is starting to see customers become catering clients.
Shaun Hays was living in a homeless shelter when he saw a flier for Stone Soup Kitchen. The 33-year-old moved his family from Pennsylvania to Oregon, seeking a new life.
Hays said Stone Soup Kitchen is providing an opportunity to start a new career and, in the future, he would like to own his own restaurant. When his mother’s trailer was demolished, Hays decided to pack up his bags and come to Portland. He said the city’s caring reputation was a big factor.
And there was a lady involved.
Hays has a partner and two children to support. They pooled income tax refunds and “hopped on the train” to Portland. He credits his partner for saving his life.
“Before I met her, I was in and out of jail all the time,” Hays said. “I was at that point where I didn’t want to be in jail no more and I didn’t want to die in jail.”
Hays left what he described as a gang-infested area near York, Pa.
“It was rough,” he said. “People killing each other all the time.”
Hays said he was incarcerated on drug paraphernalia charges.
With a new home in Portland, Hays now finds himself doing homework and learning new skills. Owning a restaurant is a dream he didn’t have five years ago.
“The program here is great,” he said. “If you are willing to make a change and actually start doing something with your life, this is great start to that.”
At Stone Soup, Hays is being instructed by Scott Dolich, a longtime cooking teacher. Dolich, 51, said Hays has demonstrated he is open to learning.
“He’s really into it and passionate,” Hays said. “He’s a great example of someone looking for training.”
Dolich has 30 years’ cooking and teaching experience and previously owned two restaurants (Park Kitchen and Bent Brick) in Portland. As chef instructor, Dolich is tasked with organizing and running the kitchen. Dolich said there is one quality the program’s participants must have: “The most important thing is curiosity.”
Dolich said this is his first stint as a dedicated teacher and he looks forward to mentoring participants.
“In this job specifically, it’s a great opportunity to teach people who really want it and need it,” he said. “People come in here looking for some job skills. I know a lot of restaurants and catering companies are looking for good people to come and work for them.”
Stone Soup is open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Prices are fair, with cups of soup going for $4, bowls for $8, small salads $5, large salads $9 and sandwiches $12. The bar is open for happy hour from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays. Arrangements can be made for private events, catering and pop-up dining.
Providing excellent customer service, Dolich said, is rewarding.
“I really enjoy working with my hands and like the aspect of being able to please people,” Dolich said. “That’s one of the good things about working in the kitchen is we get some really good gratification just making sure customers are happy.”
As he oversees daily operations, Craig Gerard believes in what this tiny kitchen can do for a big city.
“I know this has huge potential for the city of Portland,” Gerard said. “Stone Soup has big potential in terms of the niche we can fill, both for the food scene and the restaurant scene in Portland, and for a community that has been disadvantaged for a lot of different reasons. If we can make something positive of that, that’s really the goal.”
The Gerards are world travelers who have lived abroad in Vietnam and Israel. Ronit, a U.S. foreign service officer, recently traveled to Senegal to assist with efforts to provide a clean water supply in the West African country.
Working to get his life back on track, Williamson is one of Ronit’s biggest fans.
“I am influenced by Ronit,” he said. “She is such a wonderful woman that it gives me encouragement every day to do better in life and be good to other folks -- how to feed people and be happy. She’s the lady that brought water to villages around the world. She’s an inspiration to me. She’s super smart, super nice. Has a great heart and does it all with an iron glove.”
As momentum builds for the restaurant, catering business and job training program, the Gerards expect to have tests along the way.
“We know as a young organization we need to prove ourselves,” Craig Gerard said. “We need to train well – make sure that our program participants when they show up for their externship or first job, that they are doing exactly what they need to be doing and they’re prepared for that.”
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