Join POP ROC and Friends on Friday, August 26th for our fifth "Chef Challenge & Free Lunch Friday Event!"
Come one, come all! Everyone is welcome. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from, you get an exceptional meal for free!
Since April 2022, POP ROC, The Father's Heart Ministry, and a top chef have been coming together in SPACE to provide the community a free lunch.
This month we are featuring Chef Ahmad Rivazfar. Chef Ahmad shares, "I started cooking when I arrived in the US in 1976. I love different ethnic or diverse groups of meals but above all, is my traditional Iranian food that I’ve given it to my children. Even though I was in Iran until I was 20 years old, my mother helped me achieve my own style. I never became a professional chef but cooked for my six kids and later their significant others and then my beautiful grandchildren arrived. I usually cook for at least 20 people every Sunday and they all have favorites for me to make."
Chef Ahmad is the father of Pastry Chef, Mina Rivazfar-Hoyt who was voted the best Chef in Rochester last year. When Chef Mina was our guest, out of all the people she could’ve asked to come in and help her, the person she asked was her father. After spending time in the kitchen with him, we knew that we were kindred spirits. From washing dishes in fine dining restaurants in Paris, to hunkering down to cook for his family, and never having been classically trained, when he asked if he could be part of our lunch program, we instantly said yes!
We're excited to serve alongside him for our fifth free lunch Friday and Chef Challenge event!
For those who are joining us for the first time, what makes this event a challenge is that the chef gets the main ingredients one week ahead of time and then have to create a plate that will feed 75-100 people out of it.
This idea was birthed out of the pandemic while volunteering to cook hundreds of meals a week with The Father's Heart Ministry. The Father's Heart is a mobile food truck ministry that goes out faithfully every week to feed those in need.
Oftentimes when we show up, we have no idea what we’re making until that day. We take it seriously and try to make delicious meals out of whatever gets donated. It can be a challenge, but we’re always making something delicious with the opportunity.
Join us the fourth Friday of this month, August 26 from 12pm to 1pm for our fifth Free Lunch and Chef Challenge event.
We look forward to serving you!
If you’re interested in making a financial contribution to help feed our community, please click DONATE below. Thank you for your service!
Are you a Chef interested in participating in an upcoming challenge? Please fill out the Chef Request form below.