California
Fresh Buffet: Service For Charity
Christine Hall
Not too long ago I began hearing about the California Fresh Buffet, which had opened in a building that once housed a Red Lobster in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. All of the help are volunteers, I heard, and all of the profits are donated to charity.
At first I was both interested and disinterested. Interested, because I’m a sucker for cafeterias and buffets. Disinterested, because an “all volunteer staff” evoked images of people with less than professional attitudes serving up food resembling the stuff that soup kitchens feed to the homeless. I’ve learned from experience that as much as I like a good buffet, a bad buffet, with food poorly cooked and left on the heating tables until dried out, is one of the most disappointing experiences on the planet.
When my roommate took her grandmother there for dinner and returned with a rave review, unusual for her since she’s a chef and usually overly critical of any eating establishment, my interest was peaked, however. Several months later, I found myself meeting roommate and grandmother after work at the California Fresh Buffet for dinner.
While standing in the cashier’s line, I noticed that the customers weren’t the cowboys and truck drivers usually associated with the buffet business, but were people whose dress and manners indicated they could’ve been waiting for a table at a fancy, pricey restaurant where reservations are required. Not only that, the cashier was downright friendly, a big change from the humorless sourpusses I’ve come to expect when exiting from my favorite cafeteria chain.
At most buffet joints you pay your money, grab a plate, pile it high, find a table and chow down, so I was quite surprised to discover that here we would be seated by a host. Because one member of our party was in a wheelchair, we had to wait a moment or two for a table that was appropriately accessible and, while waiting, I noted that the décor didn’t have the look of a typical buffet style eatery, but was more like an upscale family restaurant. We were seated by a young man who was both courteous and professional – again surprising for an unpaid volunteer.
The food in no way resembled what I’ve come to expect from “all you can eat” joints. At the California Fresh Buffet, every night has a theme. We were there on “Italian night” and I found myself tempted by the likes of lasagna, pasta alfredo, parmigiana and a host of other Italian fare. Other “theme nights” include Mexican, Oriental, Caribbean/Cajun and European. There were other items not connected with the nightly theme, like corned beef and cabbage, home style meatloaf, vegetable dishes and one of the largest salad bars I’ve ever seen. All items were obviously made with fresh ingredients and delicious.
Although the food was several steps above what I’d expected, it was the quality of the service that really made this experience exceptional. For example, dirty plates were removed from the table promptly, with a courteousness that transcended mere politeness. There was an elusive “something” in the way we were treated that made us feel as if we were regarded as human beings who mattered rather than as customers to be satisfied.
From their literature I discovered that the California Fresh Buffet is owned and operated by the University for Human Goodness which is affiliated with the Human Service Alliance, an organization which sponsors projects that include a residential home for terminally ill people, respite care for children with developmental disabilities, health and wellness services, and conflict-resolution services. Profits from the restaurant are given to the Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina, the Empowering Center of the Winston-Salem YWCA, the Helping Hearts Project for children with disabilities, Samaritan Ministries and the Shepherd Center of Greater Winston-Salem.
Thirty-eight of the restaurant’s forty-three employees are volunteers who come from all walks of life. Represented among the staff are CPAs, attorneys, carpenters, physicians, stay-at-home parents, teachers and others. Most of them are students at the University for Human Goodness, which offers a year long program centered on service and group work. The restaurant is designed to be a laboratory for the application of principles discussed in the university’s courses, and as a model for other not-for-profit organizations.
On the night I was there, a young man named David was on duty at the stir fry station. I caught him in a rare moment when people weren’t lined-up, waiting for him to prepare Cajun or lemon pepper chicken strips. He told me that he was from California and that he’d moved to Winston-Salem just to take courses at the University for Human Goodness.
I decided then and there that I simply had to find-out more about this university. In this day and age, going to school to study “human goodness” is a real alternative approach.
RELATED ARTICLE: THE UNIVERSITY FOR HUMAN GOODNESS
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