Yesterday afternoon (Wednesday, Oct. 19), rocker Jon Bon Jovi unveiled the opening of JBJ Soul Kitchen — a new restaurant in the heart of New Jersey, where the singer was born and raised.

The Soul Kitchen is a “community kitchen” which redefines how the issue of hunger can be addressed. With no prices set on the menu, the facility is equip to serve meals to customers who have earned them through volunteer hours. There are no prices on the menu, rather the customers make a suggested donation for the meals to help contribute toward the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation.

The kitchen’s new location has been a project two years in the making. Up until renovating the 1,100 square foot former auto-body shop, the JBJ Soul Kitchen would serve meals utilizing two different pilot locations and assessing the patrons’ needs and response to the model.

“At a time when one in five households are living at or below the poverty level, and at a time when one out of six Americans are food insecure, this is a restaurant whose time has come,” says Jon Bon Jovi. “This is a place based on and built on community – by and for the community.”

The opening of Soul Kitchen comes at the same time that the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation celebrates its fifth year as a non-profit organization, which the Bon Jovi frontman serves as the Chairman of the Board. The organization was designed to break the cycle of poverty and homelessness “one Soul at a time.” To date Jon Bon Jovi and the Soul Foundation have provided affordable housing for hundreds of low-income individuals and families.

The JBJ Soul Kitchen is currently open from 5:00PM – 7:00PM Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The kitchen is located at 207 Monmouth Street, Red Bank, N.J. 07701. To make reservations to dine, please call (732) 842-0900 or visit their official website by clicking here.

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