All Are Welcome at the Soul Kitchen|来者不拒的心灵厨房

All Are Welcome at the Soul Kitchen

by Marcus Maurice

Jon Bon Jovi runs a pay-what-you-can restaurant in New Jersey.

　　Jon Bon Jovi spent a Friday a few months ago at the White House in Washington, DC. He was giving his input to the Council for Community Solutions, which he is part of. Afterwards, he jumped on the train and headed to his restaurant, Soul Kitchen, in Red Bank, New Jersey. There, he headed to the back and spent the rest of the night washing dishes. Now, this might seem like a job beneath a multi-millionaire and one of the world's biggest rock stars, but his restaurant is so unique that he has poured his blood, sweat, and tears into it.

　　At the Soul Kitchen, there are no prices for the gourmet-quality food. Instead, customers pay what they can afford. If they don't have enough money for food, they can volunteer at the restaurant for a few hours and get a certificate for a meal. The idea for this unique community restaurant came to Bon Jovi during the recent economic downturn. He said that most people don't want handouts and feel embarrassed if they have to go to a soup kitchen. He decided to give people proper food in a nice restaurant that they could feel good about going to. The catch was they either had to pay or spend time cleaning, cooking, or serving food.

　　The Soul Kitchen has become a success because a unique community has been built up around it. Bon Jovi feels that food is a great equalizer when everyone is eating the same things. The Soul Kitchen is his way of saying that everyone is welcome at his table.

     1.     Why was Bon Jovi at the White House?

(A) To meet with President Obama.

(B) To get investors for the Soul Kitchen.

(C) To perform in a concert.

(D) To give his thoughts on a community group.

     2.     According to the article, why doesn't the Soul Kitchen have prices for its meals?

(A) People can volunteer to work for a meal.

(B) All the food is free because the owner is a billionaire.

(C) It's a soup kitchen established by a local charity.

(D) The prices are too expensive to put on the menu.

     3.     What does the word catch mean in the second paragraph?

(A) Eating for free.

(B) An unsuspected condition.

(C) Capturing the food themselves.

(D) To lie about their finances.

     4.     What does Bon Jovi say about food in the final paragraph?

(A) It can only be eaten by a select few.

(B) Good meals make everyone feel equal.

(C) Quality meals taste much better at his restaurant.

(D) The Soul Kitchen only sells organic vegetables.

来者不拒的心灵厨房

琼．邦乔飞于纽泽西州经营一家『随你付』餐厅。

　　琼．邦乔飞在几个月前的某个星期五待在位于华盛顿特区的白宫。他向『小区发展方案理事会』提供了他的一些想法，而他同时也是理事会的成员之一。随后，他便跳上火车前往他位于纽泽西州红堤镇的『心灵厨房』餐厅。到了那里，他就往后头走，整个晚上其余的时间他都在洗碗盘。当下，这份工作看似有失邦乔飞千万富豪及世界上最伟大摇滚巨星之一的身分，但他的餐厅相当独特，让他不惜投注许多血汗和泪水。

　　在心灵厨房里，高质量的美食都没有标价。相反地，顾客是依自己所能负担的能力来付钱。假使他们没有足够的钱来享用食物，也可以在餐厅里担任数小时的义工，便可以取得一份用餐券。最近经济衰退的这段期间，让邦乔飞有了这家独特小区餐馆的想法。他说大多数人都不想要受人施舍，而如果必须到专门救济穷人的地方用餐，他们又会感到羞愧。因此邦乔飞决定在一间他们能开心前往的好餐厅提供人们适当的食物。背后的条件就是，他们不是得付钱就是得花时间来打扫、做菜或是上菜。

　　心灵厨房已大获成功，因为它的周围已建立了一座独特的小区。邦乔飞认为让每个人吃相同的东西也是一种齐头平等。心灵厨房便是他用来表达欢迎每个人都来用餐的方式。

答案： 1.   D   2.   A   3.   B   4.   B

 

　　邦乔飞乐团由主唱琼．邦乔飞在 1983 年创立，其成员包括了吉他手 Richie Sambora、键盘手 David Bryan、贝斯手 Alec John Such 和鼓手 Tico Torres。除了贝斯手在 1994 年离开（使乐团减少为 4 人），乐团的原班人马在一起已经 28 年了。乐团的《难以捉摸》（Slippery When Wet）（1986）和《纽泽西》（New Jersey）（1988）获得了巨大的成功，仅仅在美国就卖出了 1 千 9 百万张，8 首歌进入十大金曲排行榜，使乐团成为全球著名的摇滚巨星。

　　在不停的巡回演唱之后，乐团在 1990 年于纽泽西演唱时出现了分歧，在这段时间里琼．邦乔飞和吉他手瑞奇都发行了个人专辑。1992 年，乐团带着双白金唱片《保持信念》（Keep the Faith）回归，从此以后在 1990 年代和 2000 年代又陆续发行了一系列白金唱片。（数据源：维基百科）