Waste Not Want Not
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By Letisha Steele
I grew up in the coal-mining region between West Virginia and Virginia. You've probably heard about this area. Many of the folks in this area experience extreme poverty, poor education, and job opportunities, and they have the highest rate of opioid addiction in the country.
I lived the life of a stereotypical person born in this area. I played in the creek, lived in a trailer, and some of our neighbors still had outhouses. Money was tight, and after my parents divorced, my mom took a management job with a local retailer. Nannie, my great-grandma, became my main caretaker. She raised me with the saying “waste not, want not”. We never threw out food, and when the cabinets were empty we made do with what we had. A favorite memory of mine is when we had no bread and she made me a sandwich by using pancakes, topped with a tomato from the garden, and mayonnaise.
Growing up in a rural area, where everyone was at the same socioeconomic level, I never realized we were “poor”. When my mom's job relocated her to a more populated area, I transferred to a school where most families were high income, and their kids made sure I knew that I wasn’t one of them; I was less than. This experience would be the beginning of my journey to leave the Appalachian Mountains. I began to forge a path for myself that was separate from my roots, history, and class.
At 19, I took my first job at a fine dining restaurant, The Troutdale Dining Room. Everything we served was fresh, local, seasonal, and made from scratch. The chef/owner was a woman. She was a creative force, she was tough, and she was such an inspiration. From my first shift working with her, I knew I wanted to be a chef. For the next 25 years, I built my career by working at some of the most highly rated restaurants with the best chefs on Maui and in Colorado. I became “too busy” to travel home, I lost my accent, and I forgot my roots.
In my early 40’s I was becoming disenchanted with the restaurant scene. The low wages, long hours, the misogyny, and the elitism within the industry were taking a toll on my mental health. I felt like I was becoming someone that I didn’t want to be; a leader who didn't see the employee next to me as an individual. I was always too busy to stop and engage and grow my team.
Having recently graduated from college with a BA in Psych, I longed to combine my love of food with my passion for helping folks. It was during this time that I came across a job posting for SAME Cafe, a “participate how you can” restaurant on Colfax. The food was amazing! A true farm-to-table restaurant and they made everything in-house. I met with the founders, Brad and Libby Birky, and we often talked about, and sometimes even cried over, our shared desire to make healthy delicious food that’s accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay.
Transitioning from working with a well-trained staff to guiding a kitchen filled with volunteers with little to no culinary experience was a huge adjustment. I had to learn to slow down and to engage in a meaningful way with our guests and volunteers, many of whom were experiencing trauma, addiction, and homelessness.
Working at SAME, I learned to be more generous with my time and to put people before productivity. Our guests and volunteers teach me so much and they remind me to appreciate my roots. Their lives could be in such a tough place, but we can be together at the prep table, listen to old R&B, dancing, and singing while we cook a meal. It can be hard work but we make the best of it, and the toughest day in the SAME kitchen is always better than my best day at any other restaurant.
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Letisha Steele is the Operations Officer and Chef for So All May Eat (SAME Cafe). In addition, she serves as the Co-Chair for The Denver Sustainable Food Policy Council, whose mission is to influence policy that fosters food security for all community members. At the age of 15 She began her culinary career in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia. Her passion lies in food justice, community outreach, racial equity, and ensuring that healthy food is accessible to everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic status.
Opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Best Served. To achieve our mission of bringing more voices to the table, we are committed to sharing a variety of viewpoints across the industry.
