Local hot dog stand provides free meals for the homeless
CALEXICO — For the simple sake of wanting to help those less fortunate, a local hot dog cart on Saturday provided 75 homeless persons here free chili dogs.
Had it sold them, Pinki’s Hot Dogs could’ve made approximately $470 from the more than 140 dogs it served — not to mention the free chips and bottled water it included with each meal.
However, the satisfaction of feeding those in need was more than enough to make the experience worthwhile, Pinki’s owner Luis Daniel Sandoval explained.
“I do this every day, so I figured I might as well do it for them,” he said. “Who knows what they’re going through?”
Sandoval and his four team members set up shop at 6 p.m. at the parking lot on Third Street and Heber Avenue.
In just 30 minutes, the team was able to serve the 75-person line, providing each homeless person with a fresh chili dog and an assortment of toppings from which to choose.
Seeing the yellow and black Pinki’s food cart in the parking lot was out of the ordinary for most of the transients, as they probably expected to see the usual Brown Bag Coalition volunteers.
Brown Bag Coalition, a local non-profit organization, has provided dinner every day for the past four years in the very same parking lot.
The coalition runs its meal service solely on donations from the community and volunteers from throughout the Valley.
Pinki’s volunteered to take Saturday’s meal, and as opposed to serving the usual pre-packaged meals on a fold-out table, the business brought out its own grill and cart.
“I was like, if I had the opportunity to cook for them, then I’ll do it,” Sandoval said. “I wanted to give them an actual hot meal.”
Brown Bag Coalition co-founder Maribel Padilla said she believed Pinki’s brought an experience that the meal recipients won’t soon forget.
“To them, they feel like regular people,” Padilla said. “It’s as if they went to Mexicali and ate at a stand. Usually, its people just give you a plate in an assembly line. With Pinki’s, it’s right there and then; it’s not pre-packaged.”
Sandoval noticed the homeless were truly appreciative of being served like any other customer would.
“Some guy even said, ‘I don’t have much, but I’ll give a tip,’” Sandoval said. “Like a customer.”
It was the first time Pinki’s, which was founded in 2018 in Calexico and caters events throughout the Valley, had volunteered at a Brown Bag Coalition dinner.
Furthermore, Padilla added, although plenty of local businesses and organizations have donated food, money and staff to volunteer, this was the first time a food business has ever prepared and served its meals on site.
“The best part is he (Sandoval) did it himself,” Padilla said. “Instead of picking up the food or just donating the food, he came out and he wanted to do it. He wanted to see for himself, to experience that. It’s one thing to see it on Facebook or pictures or in the newspaper — it’s another to see the people themselves.”