Farming Hope
Event venue · Civic Center ·
Culinary job training nonprofit offering events, delicious food, and community support
Information
690 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94102 Get directions
Culinary job training nonprofit offering events, delicious food, and community support
690 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94102 Get directions
"A food-security nonprofit will host a chef dinner on Thursday, August 14 featuring a noted North Beach restaurant; the event will offer three to five courses with an optional drinks pairing, and proceeds will support the nonprofit's second-chance hiring programs and community gardening efforts. Early-bird tickets are available until Monday, July 14 and can be purchased online." - Paolo Bicchieri
"I learned that Farming Hope, a job-training and food-waste organization, just won a U.S. Department of Agriculture Community Food Projects grant (part of ARPA), and USDA Deputy Under Secretary Sanah Baig will visit the nonprofit's new-ish headquarters at 690 Van Ness Ave today at 4 p.m. to announce the award." - Paolo Bicchieri
"I learned from the San Francisco Business Times that Bay Area-based non-profit Farming Hope has signed a lease on the space and will move its distribution kitchen and job training program to the Civic Center-adjacent location; the group offers a culinary training program for people who have been recently incarcerated or are experiencing homelessness, where paid apprentices learn to cook in part by helping prepare meals that are provided free of charge to families in need, and Farming Hope helps graduates find jobs at restaurants around the city. I've also noted that Farming Hope has been using the former Cala space on Fell Street and hosts a dinner series featuring chefs from Flour + Water, Good Good Culture Club, and more." - Lauren Saria
"Walking into the Farming Hope space on Fell Street, where Gabriela Cámara’s Cala once took up residence, feels like a verdant dinner party: the organization stages chef‑led dinners to connect high‑end cuisine with its mission of combating San Francisco’s food‑access issues. At the third chef‑led dinner I attended, co‑executive director Andie Sobrepeña reminded guests that the six‑course menu was prepared root‑to‑stem as part of an effort to reduce waste, and culinary director Phil Saneski explained that these events raise attention and funds for the nonprofit’s broader programming. The space also functions as a hub for grocery pickups for housing‑ and food‑insecure families, and Farming Hope employs formerly incarcerated people to serve food at partner sites and grow produce in its community garden on Eddy and Divisadero Streets. The November 5 menu highlighted upcycled, largely vegetarian dishes—cacio e pepe with a parmesan‑rind broth and dehydrated Fruit Loops, cauliflower “ribs” with pickles, cauliflower crème brûlée, a vegan Caesar with grilled turnips, and breadsticks made with once‑discarded pecan shells—illustrating Saneski’s point that every course highlights things you’d see at home and shows how to reduce waste. The nonprofit also runs Wednesday‑night, three‑course meals (appetizer, entrée, dessert) for under‑resourced families so they can experience a fine‑dining atmosphere, has increased apprentices from 19 last year to 30 this year, has served 98,265 free meals since January 2022, and hosts visiting chefs (previous dinners featured Good Good Culture Club and David Thu; Flour + Water is next), with hopes to bring in more high‑profile chefs; Alice Waters and Michael Tusk have already visited." - Paolo Bicchieri
"As the Refettorio’s operating partner in San Francisco, Farming Hope is a garden-to-table non-profit training program dedicated to helping formerly incarcerated or unhoused people learn skills and gain employment; diners may recognize its work from Manny’s, the Mission cafe that previously served Farming Hope’s food. Rosenbush had served on Farming Hope’s board and, when Cala could not reopen during the pandemic, offered the space on a one-year lease so Farming Hope could continue its programs—support that allowed the organization to resume running its food and beverage program in June." - Ellen Fort