"nonprofit" news and stories

Ever have guilt about a fancy restaurant meal? Whether it's justified or not, dropping big bucks on a high-end dinner can feel ethically uncomfortable when there are people in need. A restaurant in Charleston, West Virginia, is turning that notion on its head, donating 100 percent of its profits to local charities.

The non-profit eatery, which opened its doors this week, is called Practically Delish. It's run by Virgil Sadorra, a chef and restaurateur who previously owned another restaurant at the same location called Delish Express, where he turned out a variety of Asian-inspired dishes like udon noodles and satays served with a signature Thai peanut sauce.

Sadorra came up with the non-profit concept after talking to a restaurant owner in Denver, Colo., who runs a similar venture. He liked the idea of using his skills to help others, and sought out a business partner. Surprisingly, he found her in a classroom, not a kitchen. Janessa Spence, a teacher at a nearby elementary school, stepped up and bought the place when she heard about the plans.

This month, Good Magazine - which donates its readers' subscriptions to the nonprofit org of their choice - let us all in on a little secret. Actually, several little secrets. They're called "speakeasy restaurants," a catchy term for underground eateries and "supper clubs" that aren't sanctioned by their city's health departments and are frequented only by a small, specific clientele who are privy to the information. This usually occurs virally, because even posting about them online increases the chance that the speakeasies will be closed down.

These "restaurants" are primarily run out of people's homes, and actually aren't all about the food. Instead, the point of going to one is the people you'll meet and the comfortable atmosphere you'll enjoy. In fact, from the sound things, the only clandestine quality about these top-secret eateries is exactly that: the fact that they're operated in the shadows and that they are choosy about their diners. And except for a few suspect experiments in molecular gastronomy here and there, the get togethers sound relatively tame, and feature mainly traditional, home-cooked meals.

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A Concord, Mass., farm that grows produce for local charities recently reported 200 pounds of parsnips missing. According to The Concord Journal, it appears that someone snuck on to the property of volunteer-operated Gaining Ground and uprooted the tasty vegetables. So far, no arrests have been made. What's baffling is that the crops apparently aren't visible from the street and, according to Gaining Ground's coordinator, parsnips are hard to spot anyway. There's some speculation that this may have been an inside job. Hopefully it won't happen again. I really have to wonder how one even manages to abscond with 200 pounds of root vegetables.

A study done by the Sea Turtle Restoration Project looked at tuna samples from 6 of the most popular sushi restaurants in Los Angeles and found average mercury levels of 0.721 parts per million. The group is claiming that these mercury levels are dangerously high and describing the risk of eating it as a “new Russian roulette.”

However, other sources, like the nonprofit Center for Consumer Freedom, say that the group’s study is deeply flawed. For example, the FDA’s maximum allowable level of mercury in tuna is 1 part per million, a level that is above the average found in the study.

Not only was most of the tuna below the federal mercury standard, but the standard is based on a number that is 10 times less than the amount that is associated with health risks. Mercury does, however, remain in the body and builds up over time. While the risk of eating a piece of sashimi may not be as high as the Sea Turtle Restoration Project claims, it is still fact that consuming a lot of tuna can increase your risk for mercury related health problems, which can include memory loss and damage to the nervous system. Other concerns about the study stem from the possible ulterior motives of the Sea Turtle group. Because it is not a consumer health group but an environmentalist organization, they may be hoping to stop certain areas from being fished rather than actually looking out for the safety of sushi eaters.

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