Los Alamos resident Anna Llobet Megias delivered some 150-200 portions of food from Sirphey to St. Elizabeth’s Shelter in Santa Fe. Courtesy photo
SIRPHEY NEWS RELEASE
Local restaurant, SIrphey, found itself in a peculiar situation at Friday night’s concert at Ashley Pond. Because of where its tent was placed by the County, they could be present, but would not be allowed to serve hot food.
In preparation for the event, Sirphey’s staff had prepared between 150 and 200 portions of food for the community, food which could no longer be sold on Friday night. Sirphey is not open at its Deacon Street location on weekends, so disposal of the food would be necessary.
“We didn’t want that to happen. There was nothing we could do about our own losses, but possibly compounding that with that much waste was just too much,” said owner Prashant Jain.
Appeals for ideas went out on social media on Friday night, and the community responded in a major way, sharing ideas and suggestions for shelters and organizations that could use the prepared food.
Local community member Anna Llobet Megias contacted SIrphey to suggest homeless shelters in Santa Fe. Locals may recognize her name from her donations drives and dedication to shelters and charitable organizations in the community.
On Sunday morning, Llobet Megias and the SIrphey team met at Sirphey to pack up all the curries and a fresh batch of rice, which Llobet Megias delivered to St. Elizabeth’s Shelter.
St Elizabeth’s Shelter on Alarid Street in Santa Fe provides emergency housing, food, counseling, and case support to both individuals and families. Their goal is to not only address the immediate needs of those in need, but to work toward ending the cycle of homelessness, altogether. Donations can be made, here: https://www.steshelter.org/donate.
“We are so glad it went to a wonderful organization and to people’s mouths, not the trash,” said Jain. “Having grown up in India, waste of resources like food and water is a very important concern to me. I’m always in awe of Anna’s dedication to charitable causes and I’m proud to know her. She made a dedicated trip on a Sunday morning to connect those in need and really brought about the best possible outcome, here.”
Sirphey does intend to continue trying to serve food at the Summer Concert Series at Ashley Pond but has received no communication from the county that it will be granted the season-long space with electricity they reserved in May.
Sirphey operates two local locations. Its Deacon St location is attached to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post and serves a rotating menu of dishes from around the world between Tuesday and Friday. Its second location in Frijoles Canyon at Bandelier National Monument offers classic Americana fare. Sirphey has been involved in the Los Alamos Summer Concerts at Ashley Pond since 2017.
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