Claus Meyer, the star Danish chef and co-founder of world famous Noma, has a few big projects in the works that he hopes will be a bit more accessible than a Michelin star. Chief among them is a combined restaurant and culinary school opening later this year in a former 99 cent store in Brownsville, both of which will be geared chiefly towards residents of the neighborhood. This is the second school-restaurant combo from Meyer, the first being Gusto in La Paz, Bolivia. Both neighborhoods were chosen for their limited access to healthy food, with the goal of empowering residents and the local economy by providing affordable dining and education together.
Applications are currently open to Brownsville residents aged 18-24 for a year long culinary program at the new school. Meyer’s team also plans to offer free cooking classes to residents throughout the year, and serve food from the neighborhood at the 40 seat restaurant. Additional details have yet to be set in stone, although there are sure to be plenty of fans of Meyer who treat the spot as a destination restaurant, no matter what it looks like.
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Gusto in La Paz, Bolivia