Overview
Whenever an area is impacted by a disaster, more than likely Mercy Chefs is there helping – boots on the ground and spatulas in hand. Mercy Chefs is a global non-profit disaster and humanitarian relief organization that prepares restaurant quality meals to victims, volunteers and first responders.
It was founded by Chef Gary LeBlanc after he saw how Hurricane Katrina impacted his hometown of New Orleans in 2005.
“I began to see the pictures on television: those folks standing on bridges were people I recognized, people I used to work with, and I was compelled to volunteer and do disaster relief work.” – Chef Gary LeBlanc
Along with Mercy Chefs mobile kitchen outreach, they’ve also developed Mercy Chefs Community Kitchens to help those who regularly struggle with food insecurity.
Challenge
Unfortunately, Mercy Chefs stays busy.
Because there’s seemingly always a disaster somewhere in the world, Chef LeBlanc and his team are always traveling and, more importantly, have plenty of people to feed. Whether it’s people impacted by a devastating storm or those continuously suffering from food insecurity, Mercy Chefs’ mission is to “just go feed people.”
The challenge for Mercy Chefs is clear: How can they cook meaningful meals for thousands of people?
“Mercy Chefs is answering the call for hurricanes, for tornados, for floods, for wildfires, for earthquakes, for civil unrest issues – there’s no end to the disasters that are striking this country,” Chef LeBlanc said. “Those people appreciate a hot meal more than I could possibly begin to describe.”
How Our Equipment Helped
Groen Braising Pans have helped Mercy Chefs serve literally millions of people across the world.
Eight Groen Braising Pans give much-needed flexibility for the Mercy Chefs team because they braise, roast, boil, simmer, poach, bain-marie, pan-fry, grill, saute and steam. For an organization always on the move, that versatility helps the chefs use what they have to cook a warm meal.
“A Groen Braising Pan is the most versatile piece of equipment in the kitchen and it’s the only one I’d travel with if I could only travel with one.” – Chef Gary LeBlanc
Also, the 40-gallon braising pans Chef LeBlanc and his team use helps produce a high volume of servings needed to serve meals to thousands of people at a time.
“There’s no way for us to serve more than 26,000 people a day without the right equipment,” Chef LeBlanc said. “Groen has been part of that since the very beginning.”