New restaurant in Colorado offers free meals, gives everyone a seat at the Sunday night dinner table
What started as one Colorado woman's Sunday family dinner is now a free restaurant where everyone has a seat at the table.
"It's more than a meal. We are having neighbors from all different walks of life coming and breaking bread together," said Mary Grothe, the founder of Sunday Salmon.
Salmon, vegetables and rice is a meal Grothe has cooked for her family for a decade.
"Sunday night, I was there and mama was cooking and we would all gather around that table and it became such a staple or tradition in our house," Grothe said.
When she realized not every family could afford a Sunday dinner, she invited them to hers. That's when her Sunday Salmon meals began. It got going in a Castle Rock building that was formerly a Village Inn restaurant. While the food is free, anyone who wishes to make a donation is welcome to.
"Extending the table cooking the exact same spread from what we have at home and feeding as many people as we can but offering it as no cost," Grothe said.
Grothe added chicken to the menu and has made the whole meal organic and gluten free.
For two weeks now, the donation-based restaurant has offered Sunday dinner seatings at 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. They take reservations and walk-ins.
"We see different people and just have dinner. I think it's cool," said patron and Castle Rock resident Tammy Pacheco.
Strangers share tables and meals are served family style.
Grothe says Sunday Salmon is a first-of-its kind resource in Douglas County.
"In the town of Castle Rock we have 3,000 residents living at or below the poverty line. Now Castle Rock is a very affluent town and we have some amazing people out there, but often the people who are in need go unseen, and we're looking to change that," she said.
Castle Rock resident Billy Hotzfield was enjoying the meal when a CBS Colorado crew was there and said he was "blown away." He said he planned to provide a donation.
"I'm more than willing to pay given what it's going to," Hotzfield said. "Sitting down with another family that needs some companionship and just to say he we've probably all been there at one time in our lives."
Once they have enough donations Sunday Salmon hopes to one day expand to offer meals on other days of the week.
