City Flavors Supports NYC Food Entrepreneurs

City Flavors – A Night of Local Bites is a special event that supports the graduates of a unique not-for-profit NYC program to help them launch food businesses.

So you will getting a tasty glimpse of the future of the NYC artisanal food scene while you nibble and savor for a good cause. That’s a win-win on anybody’s menu.

The budding entrepreneurs are all residents of NYC Public Housing Authority (NYCHA) buildings and graduates of a free 10-week program designed to help them start and grow their food enterprises.

The program is called Food Business Pathways (FBP), and it helps these low-income foodies realize their dreams and support their families.

Each City Flavors participant has been paired with a mentor from one of the NYC’s top restaurants, or a top TV chef, to help them prepare for their first high-profile tasting event.

So it’s also a chance for you to chat with some these high-profile restaurant chefs and owners, along with the talented and passionate food entrepreneurs.

In addition to the city flavors showcased at the event, there will be beer, wine, liquor, and non-alcoholic beverages from such sponsors as Tito’s Vodka, Queen’s Courage Gin, David Bowler Wine, Doc Herson’s Spirits, Gus Grown-Up Soda, Spice Grove Roselle, and Sound Spark Tea.

City Flavors – A Night of Local Bites is at the High Line’s Chelsea Market Passage, on Monday, July 23, 6:30pm to 9:30pm.  VIP admission at 5:45 p.m.

NYCOTC followers can get discount tickets for $55.  

Use code FSD723 at checkout to get the NYCOTC discount of $40 off the $95 price.

By our math, that’s a couple of canapés less than tickets at half price

Remember, you are eating and drinking to support talented and passionate young foodies from what are often referred to as The Projects, who are the next generation of restaurant and food truck chefs and owners, and party and event caterers.

Mentors, who will assist their mentees at City Flavors stations, include:

• Clark Wolf, the specialty food expert, author, TV and radio host;
• Andrew Tarlow, owner of  Diner, Marlow & Sons, Reynard, Roman’s, and Achilles Heel;
• Bill Telepan, executive chef of Oceana;
• Ariane Daguin, chef and founder of D’Artagnan;
• James Kent, former executive chef of Nomad;
• Ardenia Brown, owner of Buttermilk Market and personal chef to Questlove;
• Jessica Weiss, pastry chef for four of Union Square Hospitality Group’s restaurants;
• Danny Lee, executive chef of Burger & Lobster;
• Jason Hicks, chef /owner of Jones Wood Foundry and The Shakespeare;
• Ham El-Wally, corporate chef with ESquared Hospitality;
• Saul Bolton, executive chef of The Norm;
• McKenzie Foster and Marco Lanuto, chefs / owners of FryGuys.

City Flavors – A Night of Local Bites is being organized by the Food Working Group of the Fund for Public Housing, a non-profit organization dedicated to the well-being of NYCHA residents by bringing new resources to their communities to reimagine and improve how public housing works in New York City.

“Food Business Pathways is an innovative program that invests in public housing residents who are entrepreneurs. The event will raise additional funding that Food Business Pathways graduates will invest in their business to expand market access, so their businesses can continue to grow,” says Rasmia Kirmani-Frye, president of the Fund for Public Housing.

For more information about the event, or to learn how to support the Fund for Public Housing and its food initiatives for NYCHA residents, contact Travis Bostick, travis@fundforpublichousing.org.

About Food Business Pathways

Since its 2015 inception, 205 NYCHA residents have graduated from the Food Business Pathways program and 132 food businesses have been created.

The program is a collaboration between NYCHA’s Office of Resident Economic Empowerment & Sustainability (REES), the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS), the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC), Start Small Think Big, Hot Bread Kitchen, other kitchen incubators, REES zone partners, and Citi Community Development.

This free business accelerator program provides NYCHA public housing residents and NYCHA Section 8 voucher holders with a passion for food and a drive for entrepreneurship with customized training and resources to launch and grow their food businesses.

About the Fund for Public Housing:

The Fund for Public Housing in an independent non-profit organization that invests in the well-being of NYC public housing residents and their surrounding communities. It collaborates with external partners to re-imagine and improve the way public housing in New York City works.

It is the first and only organization that exists solely to address a broad spectrum of priorities in New York City public housing communities.

About the Food Working Committee:

A volunteer committee of the Fund for Public Housing, the Food Working Committee creates and develops opportunities in the food and hospitality industries with and for New York public housing residents. Through the City Flavors event and other initiatives, the committee is raising money to provide grants to NYCHA resident food entrepreneurs for space rental, supplies, marketing, equipment, insurance, and other business essentials.  The committee is comprised of a broad spectrum of food industry professionals including chefs, educators, and hospitality specialists to experts in the catering, fast food, agriculture, and food tech arenas.