Bon Jovi’s Soul Kitchen restaurant in New Jersey gives out free meals on MLK Day to furloughed workers suffering in the government shutdown
- Rock star and native New Jerseyan Jon Bon Jovi opened his restaurant to furloughed government workers and their families
- The JBJ Soul Kitchen in Red Bank was open from noon until 2pm in partnership with NJ Gov. Phil Murphy’s charitable foundation
- The longest government shutdown in US history has stretched into its fifth week
A restaurant owned by musician and New Jersey native Jon Bon Jovi has provided free meals to local government workers and their families during the federal government shutdown.
JBJ Soul Kitchen in Red Bank announced on Facebook it would provide the free meals to furloughed workers today between 12pm and 2pm.
The meals are a result of a partnership between Gov. Phil Murphy’s organization the Phil and Tammy Murphy Family Foundation.
JBJ Soul Kitchen opened in 2011, and the restaurant allows customers to pay a donation or volunteer to pay for their meals.
Rock star Jon Bon Jovi sits in his JBJ Soul Kitchen community restaurant in Red Bank, N.J. in 2011. The restaurant provided free meals to local government workers and their families during the federal government shutdown
JBJ Soul Kitchen advertised the event giving away meals to furloughed government workers on social media on Saturday
JBJ Soul Kitchen announced on Facebook it will provide the free meals to furloughed workers Monday between noon and 2pm. Bon Jovi is pictured here in 2011
‘Since founding the Soul Kitchen, we wanted to ensure that anyone struggling with food insecurity had a place to go,’ said Dorothea Bongiovi and Jon Bon Jovi in a statement prior to the event.
‘This Monday, we will be open for lunch as a way to create a place of support and resources for furloughed federal workers, many of whom are our friends and neighbors. We are thrilled to work together with Phil and Tammy Murphy on this endeavor, and this Monday we look forward to giving back in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’
As of today, the percentage of TSA airport screeners missing work has hit 10 percent as the unprecedented partial government shutdown stretches into its fifth week.
More than 800,000 workers are currently furloughed or working without pay during the shutdown.
The menu offerings posted for the restaurant today
Largely the reviews of Jon Bon Jovi’s restaurant have been positive
The charitable nature of the JBJ Soul Kitchen and its cuisine has been popular with customers