By Tony Zeli
“A person from the city’s code office stood right there and said to me, ‘One of the biggest challenges in Portland right now is kitchen space.”
Dawn Brennan-Daly is the Executive Manager at St. Luke’s Community Kitchen and she wants the community to know that their space is here to help. I had a chance to speak with Dawn last month at the brand-new kitchen at the cathedral. While showing off the new space, she introduced me to Mariama Jallow a local entrepreneur who is hoping to introduce Portland to West African cuisine.
ST. LUKE’S COMMUNITY KITCHEN OPENS ITS DOORS
“We’re a commissary kitchen, that’s the model, that’s what you call it,” Dawn told me to highlight that they are not an incubator and are not putting money behind projects. Instead, they’re offering affordable commercial kitchen space to start-ups and underserved entrepreneurs. And there is demand. Like the guy from code said, there is a big challenge with kitchen space in Portland.
What is nice about their model – besides the fact that there aren’t very many commissary kitchens in Maine – is that they don’t charge a yearly membership fee. Though they cannot offer everything say Fork Food Lab can, the kitchen is a viable commercial space at much less than market rates. (And Fork Food Labs is a friend of the community kitchen.)
For $20 per hour an entrepreneur can have access to state-of-the-art, stainless-steel equipment and limited cold and dry storage (for as little as five or ten dollars per shelf). The equipment is topnotch. The range, Dawn assures me, is the best on the market. Even the fire department was impressed with the griddle. They said so when inspecting the kitchen and its advanced fire suppression system.
It’s all mint condition. St. Luke’s had a successful capital campaign a while back and the kitchen was the last step. It came online just last August. Using the space in this unique way… That was the brainchild of parishioner Tom Flynn. He had the vision and St. Luke’s needed the money, like any church. So, why not rent the kitchen to someone like Mariama Jallow.
Mariama’s Kitchen
“In Gambia, I went to school for two years to study Gambian cuisine. So, I want to bring that to Portland – to Maine in general.”
Mariama Jallow is an experienced entrepreneur who currently runs a beauty supply store. But she has a passion for West African cuisine and wants to bring the flavors of Gambia to the West End. She started training at the age of fifteen and loves most of all to cook. She was looking for a way to make Mariama’s Kitchen happen when she discovered St. Luke’s Community Kitchen.
“Starting a restaurant is risky. But if you start here, then you build clients. And then there will come a time when you will have a lot of people and you’ll be ready to have your own space. This way is less risky.”
Whoever wants to try Mariama’s West African cuisine, you’ll have a little wait. She has not started at the kitchen yet, but when the grand opening comes Mariama suggests the jollof rice – with tomato, onion, spice, vegetables, and meat cooked in a single pot – it’s a delicious Gambian dish.
Mariama invites you to try it, “Whoever wants to try West African food can come here. We will have a grand opening when the licensing is done. We are going to offer something outside where people can come and try different things. And we don’t have that in Portland. We don’t have West African food in Portland. So, it is time for people to come and try something new.”
READERS CAN HELP
“Because people like Mariama, no matter what their story is, they want to establish their business. But with the price of real estate, you can’t buy or rent a store front. That’s why we’re so devoted to this. People are trying to support themselves and their family. They are trying to make a living. But there’s not much around and what is around is expensive.”
Dawn Brennan-Daly says the number one way anyone can get involved is to volunteer. “If you want to come in and you have a skill and you want to do something. That’s great!” Email Dawn (dbrennandaly@cathedralofstluke.org) and she can get you started. Or you can donate online. Visit https://stlukesportland.org/faith-in-action/#communitykitchen.
“But more, I’d like people in the West End to say this is my neighborhood, what can I think of that could get this helping other people,” encourages Dawn.
So, join us in welcoming St. Luke’s Community Kitchen to the neighborhood and follow WEN for updates and a grand opening announcement.
Tony Zeli is publisher and editor. Reach him at thewestendnews@gmail.com.
One Comment
Nic
Curious how St. Luke’s is handling scheduling and storage as more entrepreneurs come on board—do you have dedicated blocks for recurring users, or is it first-come/first-served each week? The $20/hour access to a fully licensed, stainless setup (plus even a little cold/dry storage) feels like the kind of shared-use kitchen model that can genuinely lower the barrier for someone ready to scale beyond home production. Also, it’s interesting to think about how these community hubs plan for “non-kitchen” needs during pop-ups or renovations—portable sanitation and shower trailers (like what’s available around Rockland) can be surprisingly relevant when a space is hosting bigger events than it was built for.