The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Groups renting kitchen
Boys, Girls Clubs of Lorain County Community Kitchen available for public use
A relatively new commercial kitchen is available for public use at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Lorain County.
The facility, located at 4111 Pearl Ave. in Lorain, has been dubbed the Community Kitchen and technically opened in March 2019.
But the novel coronavirus pandemic slowed things down, said Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio Food Service Director Mike Lucas.
“It took off and then slowed down,” Lucas said of the initial opening of the kitchen.
The commercial kitchen currently is being used by five groups who are selling food, but don’t have access to a state-licensed, registered kitchen, Lucas said.
The facility has the capability of being used by 15 additional groups, he said.
“We’ll take as many as time will allow,” Lucas said.
Community Kitchen is rented out at $15 per hour, but varying rates are offered based on individual needs, Lucas said.
The need for the Community Kitchen grew out of the law that “anyone who produces a food product and plans to sell it needs to make that product in a state-licensed and registered kitchen,” according to information provided by the organization.
The Community Kitchen can be used by caterers, food truck operators, people teaching cooking classes, restaurant owners, residents who enjoy cooking and youngsters involved with the Boys & Girls Clubs, Lucas said.
The organization began building the approximate 20-by-50-square-foot facility about four years ago.
Since then, “the Community Kitchen has become popular with a host of people,” the information stated.
Lucas said he is available to advise people just starting out in commercial cooking and food preparation, which requires certain licensure among other requirements.
“It’s daunting for a lot of people,” he said of the process.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Lorain County has been serving the community’s youth since 1999, when Mike Conibear transformed a small space within an Oberlin City Schools building into a club for youngsters, according to the group’s website.
Since the organization’s inception, it has expanded to 18 locations in five cities throughout the county.
It also merged with the Boy and Girls Clubs of Cleveland, a move that began before the pandemic struck and was finalized last year, Lucas said.
“We are the largest
The Community Kitchen can be used by caterers, food truck operators, people teaching cooking classes, restaurant owners, residents who enjoy cooking and youngsters involved with the Boys & Girls Clubs, Lucas said.
youth-serving agency in Northeast Ohio,” according to the website. “Every day, over 900 of Lorain County’s most disadvantaged youth stream through our doors and learn from positive role models while feeling safe and secure and participating in life-changing programming.”
The Lorain County Boys & Girls Clubs employs about 80 full- and-parttime employees and has nearly 100 volunteers.
Angel Carrasquillo of Lorain has been using the Community Kitchen for about a year now to produce his products.
“It’s awesome,” Carrasquillo said. “It helps.
“It’s not as expensive as other facilities and it helps the Boys & Girls Clubs out.”
Carrasquillo produces two products in the kitchen that he sells locally to a Lorain restaurant, bakery and grocery store.
His first product, Nito’s Sofrito, is a puree for use in stocks, soups and rice.
“It’s like a pesto,” Carrasquillo said.
Additionally, Carrasquillo produces an all-purpose seasoning that he said he “uses for everything.”
Carrasquillo started his culinary adventures in 2009 and said he had difficulty finding a proper kitchen to make his products until he learned about the Community Kitchen.
“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “I like it. It helps a small business out.”