Lonnie’s on Market — a small takeout restaurant in downtown Brantford, Ont. — specializes in poutines, burgers and chicken wings, and is open until 3 a.m. several nights a week.

It’s exactly the kind of spot college and university students head to when they’re looking for somewhere to eat, after going the bar.

But on certain days, Lonnie’s is also set up as a soup kitchen.

For three years running, the restaurant has served free hot meals to anyone in need, three nights a week from October until the end of March. It also collects and distributes clothing. 

“Everybody deserves a meal, no matter what you’re going through,” owner Lawrence Xurieb told CBC. “Everybody’s got a battle. Everybody’s got a story to tell. And it’s just nice to know I can at least put a meal in their belly and clothes on their backs.”

On soup kitchen nights, Xurieb and his staff serve paying customers inside the restaurant, while outside, with the help of volunteers, they set up tables and food warmers, and get to the business of providing food.

Xurieb said they serve up to 150 people a night, with clients lining up along the sidewalk, braving whatever weather the cold months throws at them. 

The food for the soup kitchen is paid for by donations, mostly from local businesses. Xurieb said he manages to serve meals at a cost of about $2 per person. 

While he pays his kitchen staff to help make the food, the rest of the soup kitchen operation is managed by him and other volunteers. 

People benefiting from Lonnie’s kindness

Kim Fitzgerald, a soup kitchen regular who’s unhoused, said she gets Lonnie’s meals she wouldn’t otherwise have. 

“I’m in a walker and I can’t do a lot of stuff.”

She said the rising cost of living led her and others she knows to lose their homes. 

“They wonder why there are so many people homeless and on the street,” she said. “It’s because of the cost of living and people just can’t keep up.” 

Michael Martin does have a home, but said he’s at the very edge financially, which is why he and his two young sons depend on Lonnie’s. 

“This is where we go twice a week so they can have supper,” he said. “They [his sons] enjoy seeing the ladies that run it, we chit and chat for a bit, and move on our way.” 

Possible new plans for soup kitchen

Xurieb said the current challenging economic pains are clearly reflected at the soup kitchen, where demand is higher than ever. 

He said he’s seeing more families with children needing help. 

“This is the year I’ve given out [the most] kids’ clothes, kids’ snowsuits. The poundage of clothes I’ve given out this year is crazy. You know, I have families, mothers, fathers, kids … there’s usually a few vehicles that pull up and they come out of the vehicle — five or six of them come through the soup kitchen and get a meal.” 

That’s why, Xurieb said, he has decided to keep the soup kitchen running all year, rather than shut it down at the end of this month as planned. 

“I think after March I’m going to do it one day a week,” he said, referring to operating the soup kitchen.

The plan is to continue serving people in need Sunday evenings, when there are few other options for them, Xurieb said.

Fitzgerald said that kind of consideration makes a difference. 

“These guys are here for all of us and it helps quite a bit,” she said. “And they have no idea how grateful we are, but everybody is really grateful that they’re here.”