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In this episode of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Maggie Kane, founder of A Place at the Table on how Pay What You Can Cafes can revolutionize the restaurant industry in America.
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Food insecurity affects 800 million people globally, including 17 million households in every county in America. We must find new and innovative ways to address this marginalized issue across America. One World Everybody Eats is a community built to respond to this call.
There are now more than 60 pay-what-you-can community cafes operating in America and could be a trend in the restaurant industry that scales beyond anyones imagination.
At the surface, you may think this concept could never work, but many of these cafes are proving that opinion false. One World Everybody Eats now supports nearly 50 independent cafes and start-up cafes in its network with education, collaboration, best practice sharing, and networking opportunities.
One of these independent cafes in its network is a A Place at the Table, based in Raleigh, NC. Even during these turbulent times of COVID19, the cafe is open and serving more food than ever before.
In 2015, Maggie Kane founded A Place at the Table to create community and provide access to good food for everyone. Drawing from her experience of growing up volunteering in soup kitchens, it became clear that there was a large gap between those who have means and those without.
With this realization lead came an innovative idea- upgrade traditional soup kitchen models into what she calls Soup Kitchen 2.0; transforming places where people would eat together no matter one’s background or current circumstances.
In 2018, the flagship cafe opened in downtown Raleigh. A Place at the Table is Raleigh’s first pay-what-you-can cafe. The best part is that when you walk in, it looks like a regular restaurant, you wouldn’t know we are a nonprofit. And it’s working.
Maggie Kane is the Founder and Executive Director of A Place at the Table, the first pay-what-you-can cafe in downtown Raleigh. She graduated from North Carolina State University in 2013 and began working for a nonprofit with people experiencing homelessness.
By befriending many people living on the margins, she knew something needed to be done. Maggie has a heart to serve, a desire to always be inclusive, and a passion for loving people.
Through her work with people on the streets, she realized the power of community, the importance of dignity, and the beauty in bringing people together over incredible food.
The restaurant is now serving thousands of people in Raleigh with a dignified, healthy, and affordable meal.
However, more importantly, a meal that feeds more than just the stomach– it feeds your hearts, souls, and minds.
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Grant: What’s up, everybody? This is Grant from Causeartist. I hope everyone is doing well. Before we dive into today’s interview, I have a couple of exciting announcements.
First, I’ve launched Impact Recipe, a project offering free websites for nonprofits, social enterprises, and impact investors. You can learn more at impactrecipe.com. Secondly, I’ve partnered with Recover Brands to offer ethical, sustainable Causeartist t-shirts made from recycled materials. I’m thrilled to finally bring these ideas to life. Now, let’s jump into today’s interview.
We’re speaking with Maggie Kane, the founder of A Place at the Table, a Pay-What-You-Can café in Raleigh, North Carolina. It’s one of 61 such cafés in the U.S., offering a unique model where people can pay what they can afford for a meal. I became fascinated by this model after watching Maggie’s TED Talk.
The idea stems from her time spent working at soup kitchens, where she saw how food could be a bridge to bring people together, regardless of their background. A Place at the Table is built on the belief that everyone deserves a dignified meal and a place in the community.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants everywhere are struggling, yet A Place at the Table continues to serve its community, showing how resilient and impactful this model can be. I’m excited to share this conversation, where Maggie talks about her journey, the café’s mission, and how it’s adapting during these challenging times.
08:19
Grant: Let’s start with your journey. How did you end up creating A Place at the Table?
Maggie: I grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, and I’ve never left. I went to school at North Carolina State University, majoring in International Relations and Italian Studies, thinking I’d move abroad. But while I was still in school, I started volunteering at a day shelter for people experiencing homelessness. I got to know some incredible people there, and they became close friends. Many of them even came to my college graduation.
After graduating, I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I knew I couldn’t leave these folks behind. So, I continued volunteering and eventually fundraised to create a job for myself at the shelter, becoming the operations manager. Through that experience, I realized how important it is to share meals with people. Eating together allows you to really connect.
But eating with people experiencing poverty often meant going to soup kitchens, where the experience lacked choice and dignity. I wanted to change that.
That’s when I began taking people out for meals at regular restaurants. My friend John, who was experiencing poverty, told me how much it meant to him to be seen and heard at these places, where he had the freedom to choose what he wanted to eat. He said that living in poverty means you have no choice—everything is decided for you.
That really struck me, and it became the foundation for A Place at the Table. I wanted to create a space where everyone, regardless of their financial situation, could enjoy a dignified meal and be part of a community.
13:28
Grant: I love how you’ve framed food as something that binds us together, something that stops time and allows us to connect. It’s heartbreaking that, during this pandemic, even that has been taken away from many of us. Can you talk about the stories you heard when you first started connecting with people at the shelter? Were they similar to John’s?
Maggie: Absolutely. John’s story is, unfortunately, not unique. He had a great job, was living the so-called American Dream, but then his company went under, and he lost everything. It wasn’t his fault. He did everything right, but still ended up on the streets. Many people I met at the shelter were in similar situations—one step away from poverty.
What really struck me is how expensive it is to be poor. Once you’re down, it’s incredibly hard to get back up. You’re constantly trying to catch up, but the costs keep piling up. It’s a vicious cycle that’s difficult to escape.
19:08
Grant: Let’s talk about the Pay-What-You-Can model. How did you come up with it, and how does it work?
Maggie: In 2014, after realizing there was a need for a different kind of dining experience in Raleigh, I started researching and discovered the Pay-What-You-Can model. I found the One World Everybody Eats Foundation, which supports about 60 such cafés across the country. Each café is different, but they all share the same core principle: people pay what they can for their meal.
I visited a café in Boone, North Carolina, several times to learn about the model and how it worked. I kept waiting for someone to tell me it wouldn’t work, but everyone I spoke to thought it was a great idea. That gave me the confidence to move forward.
In late 2014, I officially formed A Place at the Table as a business, applied for nonprofit status, and started building a team. We hosted fundraisers and information sessions to raise awareness and build support.
In 2016, we began living our mission by hosting Pay-What-You-Can pop-up brunches once a month at different restaurants.
People came, ate together, and paid what they could. The response was incredible, and we knew the community wanted this. Finally, in January 2018, after years of friend-raising and building support, we opened our permanent café in Raleigh.
26:06
Grant: Given the current situation with the pandemic, how has the café adapted? Are you still serving the community?
Maggie: Yes, we’re still open, but things have changed. We’ve moved to a curbside model where people can call in their orders, park, and pick up their food. We have social distancing measures in place, and our staff is fully equipped with gloves and masks. We’re serving a limited menu, but it’s still dignified and allows people to have a choice.
Our café is all about community, and normally, when you walk in, you’re greeted by a door greeter, see a full menu, and are told your suggested price. You can pay that amount, pay more to pay it forward, or pay less and volunteer for your meal. But now, with the pandemic, the model has flipped.
Most of our diners are paying less or volunteering, but we’re still here because of the incredible support from the community. People are donating, ordering curbside, and staying connected with us on social media. Our community is the reason we’re still going.
31:37
Grant: With everything that’s going on, it’s frustrating to see that essential businesses like yours still have to deal with the burden of rent, utilities, and other overhead costs. Have you been able to get any support or relief?
Maggie: We applied for the CARES Act as a nonprofit, and one of my friends applied as a for-profit business. She was denied because the bank ran out of funding, even though she applied on the first day. We’re waiting to hear back on our application.
It’s disheartening because, as you said, we’re essential to the community, but it’s a struggle to survive. We’re just trying to get through this and keep our staff employed. I refuse to lay off my staff—we’ll go down fighting if we have to. But it’s tough, and we need more support.
35:33
Grant: Going back to your early days of volunteering at soup kitchens, did you ever think about how to improve the traditional model, or were they too constrained by funding and other factors?
Maggie: Soup kitchens have an essential role in our communities—they feed the most vulnerable and do incredible work. But their mission is different from ours. Our mission is to provide community and good food for all, regardless of means, in a dignified setting.
We wanted to create a space where people could come together, sit at a community table, and share a meal. We’re not just about feeding people; we’re about creating a community where everyone feels valued and included.
41:53
Grant: Looking ahead, what’s your vision for the future of A Place at the Table? Do you see the model expanding to other cities?
Maggie: I believe that A Place at the Table can play a big role in helping other Pay-What-You-Can cafés open in different cities. We’ve built an amazing community and developed tools that we can share with others who want to create similar spaces.
I get calls from people all over the country who want to start their own cafés, and while I may not be the one to open them, I’m here to support and guide them.
The model is definitely scalable, but it has to come from the community itself. Every city is different, and the café needs to reflect the unique needs and culture of that community.
44:58
Grant: Thank you so much, Maggie. Your work is truly inspiring, and I’m grateful for the time you’ve taken to share your story. Your café is making a huge difference, and I hope the community continues to rally around you during this difficult time.
Maggie: Thank you, Grant. I appreciate the opportunity to share our story. We’re all in this together, and I’m grateful for the support we ’ve received from near and far. Thank you for your kind words and for highlighting the work we’re doing.
