Nourishing the Ajo community during the COVID-19 Pandemic
The Sonoran Desert Inn is partnering with local cook Mimi Phillips to create a special “pay-what-you-can” take-out dinner series. We believe everyone deserves to eat well, especially during these uncertain times - regardless of their ability to pay.
Mimi’s Community Kitchen is taking a break after 11 successful weeks of feeding Ajo. Stay tuned for more info about Sunday Brunch, Tasty Tuesday, take-out items from our office, and other culinary oppprtunities this Fall!
Read below for full details on the program and our hygiene protocols. Download flyers in English or Spanish.
You know Mimi’s delicious, home-cooked food from her weekly Sunday Brunch at the inn, as well as other events around town. Mimi asked if we’d partner with her on this effort, and we jumped at the chance, once we determined we could do it safely. Here’s how it works:
The pay-what-you-can dinners are once/week on Tuesdays
Meals are portioned family-style, for 3 people, straight from the oven or stove top into take-out containers. They can be eaten right away or refrigerated/reheated.
These healthy, hearty pay-what-you-can dinners include 3 servings of an entree, veggies, and a carb. A $10 payment covers ingredient costs (e.g. $3.33/portion).
Some of you will choose to pay MORE, if you are able, to help cover the costs of meals for others. Others will choose to pay LESS - as little as $0 - no questions asked!*
Menu is published weekly on this page, Ajo Facebook groups, and posted flyers (Ajo Plaza, Olsen’s, AUSD, etc).
Customers will place their order by 9am on Tuesdays by phone (520-329-2089) or online at ajoeats.com.
For those choosing to pay, you can do so with a credit card when you order. For those who can't pay with credit card, we will accept cash in a bucket at pick-up/delivery. Remember: meals are available for anyone, regardless of ability to pay. Just let us know what you would like to pay, even $0, when you place your order. No questions, no judgement.
We have a free delivery option at 4pm for those who cannot leave their home. Everyone else signs up for a 5, 5:30, 6, or 6:30PM pick-up when they place their order. Pick-up is at our main entrance at 55 South Orilla Ave.
Mimi uses enhanced hygiene and sanitation protocols to ensure the safety of our community. This includes but isn’t limited to: working with just one other person in the kitchen; wearing a mask; frequent, rigorous hand washing; sanitizing surfaces frequently; only offering cooked foods; and packing foods directly from the oven or stove top into sealed pick-up/delivery packaging. She has been practicing physical distancing for weeks.
Both pick-up and delivery options have safety protocols built-in, including gloves, masks, sealed delivery bags, and a “touchless transaction” cash bucket (we can’t make change). Customers will pick up curbside and not get out of their vehicles. Safety is our #1 priority (delicious food is a close #2)!
*How can we give away meals for free? Here are a few ways we’re making it work:
We’re confident that folks who can afford to be generous at this time will pay more than $10 for 3 delicious meals; there’s a great tradition of neighbors taking care of neighbors in Ajo. We’ve already received lots of donations to cover meals for neighbors.
Mimi is ordering her ingredients through US Foods, so as to not burden Olsen’s with bulk purchasing at this time and so she can secure quality ingredients/quantities at the most reasonable costs, in a timely manner
SDCC is donating our commercial kitchen, marketing/outreach time, and staff to deliver meals and manage pick-ups
SDCC is helping with the up-front cost of groceries and supplies to get this off the ground
Mimi is donating her time to this ambitious effort. Any profit generated after all ingredient costs are covered are for her; she has had to suspend her regular Sunday Brunch and catering gigs during this period and we’re eager to support her, one of many Ajo entrepreneurs looking for ways to replace lost income. SDCC will not take a percentage. We may pull in additional Ajo cooks over time.
We are inspired by and adapting some best practices from “pay-what-you-can” cafes like SAME Cafe in Denver, where one of our staff members, J Brady, was a board member and a volunteer.
