Local Chef Wins National Food Hero Award and Gives Back
Ross Katz, owner of Rooster's Kitchen on Massachusetts Avenue, downtown Indianapolis, is literally one of the nicest guys you will meet. And his heart and love for the Indianapolis community will bring tears to your eyes. Earlier in 2020 when the pandemic shifted, Katz had to pivot his business model for the restaurant and for the local community. He pivoted it so much that he literally gave back thousands of meals for those in need in his community last year because that’s Ross. Yep. Genuinely great.
After getting wind of his good deeds, Edible Indy wrote an article about him being a local hero to the community and nominated him for a national award as part of a Niman Ranch and Edible Communities called the “Impacting Lives Beyond the Plate” initiative. His story was featured nationally and with over 300 nominations submitted from all across the country, Katz along with four others were chosen as a Food Hero.
As a thank you, each of the food hero recipients received more than 50 pounds of Niman Ranch sustainable meat to donate back to their community. Chef Katz, along with Jennifer Rubenstein, owner of Edible Indy (a member of the Edible Communities), local food distributor and partner, McFarling Foods, and photographer Torrie Hudson donated their products and time to serve over 200 meals of Niman Ranch pork chili and cornbread to guests at the No Questions Asked Food Pantry located at The Church Within, 1125 Spruce St., Indianapolis.
No Questions Asked Food Pantry is dedicated to providing service to anyone and everyone who asks for it in hopes of overcoming barriers that folks often face in accessing food and other basic necessities. They do not require ID or any formal information from guests. This means that no one has to disclose their identity, citizenship status, or financial situation in order to eat. They are an entirely volunteer-run operation and they rely heavily on donated food and monetary contributions. They currently are operating out of The Church Within located in Fountain Square.
“We nominated Chef Katz because of his big heart and his ability to pivot during this unimaginable time. A time when restaurants are struggling to keep their doors open and a time when more people need people to give them grace. Chef Katz never ceases to amaze me with the time, energy and money he donates to our outstanding community. He is more than deserving of this award ” says Jennifer Rubenstein, owner of Edible Indy.
“It is heartening to see the heroic and vital efforts being performed by each of these individuals to help those in need during this very difficult time. Each of these winners has taken it upon themselves to do whatever it takes to help their communities survive some very dire situations and we could not be more proud of them, or of our local publishers who tell these stories in such powerful and important ways,” said Tracey Ryder, Co-Founder, Edible Communities.
Niman Ranch, a community of independent family farmers raising livestock humanely and sustainably, is rewarding the chosen Food Heroes with donations of their Certified Humane® meats to support relief efforts. These donations continue a series of initiatives from Niman Ranch to support the restaurant sector and impacted communities during the Covid Pandemic, including an $80,000 restaurant relief fund and donations of more than 70,000 servings of meat to those in need.
“Despite the many challenges 2020 has presented, particularly for those working in the hard-hit food industry, these Food Heroes stepped up to help their neighbors,” shared Chris Oliviero, Niman Ranch General Manager. “Their local relief efforts should inspire us all to ask how we can do more to support those in need.”
More information about program and the other food hero recipients can be found at https://www.nimanranch.com/press-releases/press-release-edible-covid-national-food-heroes/ .
About Chef Ross Katz, Rooster’s Kitchen Chef Ross Katz grew up knowing he wanted to be in the restaurant business. He opened Rooster’s Kitchen in October 2016 and during the early days of this year’s pandemic, Katz like many small businesses, pivoted quickly due to circumstance, retooling his kitchen—not only to keep his customers supplied with take-out options and grocery goods, but also to expand his Feed it Forward program to aggressively support vulnerable populations. Using both monetary and product donations from businesses and individuals, Katz continues to focus on partnerships with local non-profits that address ongoing food insecurity. He has also provided thousands of meals to frontline workers.
Read more about Chef Ross Katz’s Feed it Forward program here: www.edibleindy.com/food-thought/feed-it-forward
