The Ivy Table

06/17/2026

What type of waitstaff doesn't accept tips?
Volunteers. ❤️

It might surprise you to learn that the smiling faces delivering your meals, refilling your coffee, and bussing your dishes at The Ivy Table aren't receiving anything for their time.

They serve because they believe in our mission and simply want to love on our community.

That's why, when you choose to leave something extra at checkout, it isn't a tip for your server. Any amount above the value of your meal becomes a pay-it-forward donation, helping make our pay-what-you-can café possible.

Your generosity helps provide meals for neighbors who may be struggling, allows someone to pay what they can without embarrassment, and ensures that everyone who walks through our doors is welcomed with dignity.

The next time you visit, be sure to thank one of our volunteers. Their kindness, joy, and generosity are what makes The Ivy Table so special.

You may come for the food, but you'll remember the smiles.
Grab a friend and visit us!

06/15/2026

Welcome to The Ivy Table.
If you're new here, we're glad you found us.

At first glance, we may look like any other neighborhood cafe, but we're a little different. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit built on the belief that everyone deserves a great meal and a place to belong.

Every dish we serve is made from scratch, and served with a smile by our team of volunteers.

Every guest has the option to:
• Pay the suggested price.
• Pay a little extra to help someone else.
• Pay what you can—or nothing at all—if you need a hand.

No qualifications. No forms to fill out. No questions asked. We offer every guest the opportunity to receive a free or reduced meal, making it easy to accept help with dignity when needed.

Some people come for the food. Some come to pay it forward. Some come because they need support. And when you look around the dining room, you can't tell whose who. You simply see one community gathered around tables, and that's what makes it so beautiful.

Whether it's your first visit or your fiftieth, we're saving you a seat.
Open Tuesdays-Fridays 8:30-2:00

06/14/2026

Halfway there!

There's still time to participate in our Summer Share Challenge. Invite someone who's never been to The Ivy Table, enjoy a meal together, and help us introduce one more person to SE Michigans only pay-what-you-can cafe.

Check out the original post below for all the details—and start thinking about who you'll bring!

This summer, help us spread the word about The Ivy Table.

One of the most common things we hear is, "I can't believe I didn't know this place existed!"

So we're launching the Summer Share Challenge — an opportunity for more people to discover what happens around our tables, and we need your help!

For the next 30 days, bring a friend, neighbor, coworker, or family member who has never visited before. Each time you bring a first-time guest, both of your names will be entered into our weekly Friday drawing for Ivy Table merch.

Then, on July 3, one grand prize winner will win a private breakfast or lunch gathering for up to 12 guests in our Glass Room--our way of saying thanks for helping share our story.

The weather is beautiful, the garden is growing, and there's no better time to gather around a table with someone new.

Help us spread the word, share a meal, and introduce one more person to The Ivy Table--a place where everyone belongs and community is fed!

Tag the friend you'd like bring as your guest below. ⬇️

06/13/2026

Proven Favorite: The Michigan Cherry Salad

Our menu changes slightly each week, but one dish has remained a constant since day one: the Michigan Cherry Salad.

Made with mixed greens, dried Michigan cherries, crisp apples, candied pecans, blue cheese, and our house-made cherry vinaigrette. It's consistently one of the most-ordered items on the menu.

You've made the Michigan Cherry Salad a staple, so we'd love your input as we plan what's next...

• Which other dishes do you think should never leave the menu?
• Which past favorites would you like to see make a comeback?
• What new dishes would you love for us to introduce?

The Ivy Table Cafe was built by the community, for the community. So it only makes sense that the menu reflects the people who gather around our tables.

Your feedback will help shape what we serve. We can't wait to hear your ideas.

06/12/2026

Sometimes, the most important thing we serve isn't on a plate.

As a pay-what-you-can café, we know that sometimes our guests come in needing more than just a meal. Every week, people walk through our doors carrying burdens that most of us will never see. They share stories of loss, illness, loneliness, financial hardship, and uncertainty—stories entrusted to us in confidence and stories that will never be shared online.

Recently, a man arrived on our patio on a day we were closed, desperate for a meal and a friendly face. We couldn't change the difficult circumstances that had brought him there, but we could make sure he didn't leave hungry or without hope.

So we sat with him. We listened. We offered him food and water and tissues and prayed with him.

At The Ivy Table, we're serving so much more than the meals coming out of the kitchen. Every day, we're offering compassion, dignity, and belonging along with breakfast and lunch.

If you've been looking for a meaningful way to spend your time this summer, we'd love to invite you to join us. What may look like serving food, bussing tables, washing dishes, or packing meals on the surface is really an opportunity to love your neighbors and remind every person how much they matter.

Volunteer Orientation
📅 This Monday, June 15
🕘 9:00–10:00 a.m.

Come discover that at The Ivy Table, we're not just building meals—we're building community. We'd love to make room for your at our table.

Sign up in the comments/

06/11/2026

Not a glamorous photo, but an incredible gift. ❤️

A huge thank you to the for stopping by with another generous donation of fresh ground beef (about 100 lbs).

For those not familiar with this incredible organization, they exist simply to provide monthly deliveries of healthy beef protein to local food pantries for neighbors in need.

Their mission beautifully complements ours, and together we're helping ensure that more families in our community have access to nourishing food.

We're so grateful for partners like the Earl Farm Foundation who continue to invest in our work- feeding faith, hope, and love one meal at a time.

06/10/2026

It truly took a village to get our café up and running.

Hobbs+Black Architects made it more beautiful than we could have ever imagined by not only donating the time and talent of their entire design team, but also reaching out to partners like Shaw Flooring and Virginia Tile to help secure donated materials.

Their generosity went far beyond architecture. They believed in our mission and helped create a space where neighbors can gather, meals can be shared, and everyone is welcomed with dignity.

We are forever grateful for their partnership and vision. Their work didn't just help build a café—it helped build a place of belonging and hope for our community.

06/10/2026

🚜 Looking for a Local Farmer

Many people don't realize that eliminating food waste is a huge component of our ministry. We work hard to make sure that good food is used to feed people, but when it can't, we make every effort to assure it helps feed animals or is used for compost instead of going to the landfill.

The wonderful farming family who has been picking up our kitchen scraps for the past year is moving, so we're looking for a new local partner to continue that effort.

Our current partners pick up twice a week, and each time leave with anywhere between 6-12 five gallon buckets of scraps, so its a fairly large scale operation.

If you're a local farmer-or know someone who might be interested in utilizing these scraps- please reach out.

06/09/2026

This is exactly why I love The Ivy Table.

It’s more than a cafe. It’s a place built around faith, dignity, generosity, and the belief that everyone deserves to be fed well, no matter what season of life they’re in.

Jessica and Barb felt called to create something different in Brighton, and they did.

The Ivy Table is a pay-it-forward cafe where guests can enjoy fresh, healthy food and pay the suggested price, pay a reduced amount, receive a meal for free, or help cover a meal for someone else.

And that’s only part of what they do.

Through their Connecting Tables ministry, they rescue surplus food, turn it into ready-to-eat meals, and help stock free meal fridges throughout Livingston County. Right now, those fridges are providing around 400 to 500 meals every week.

That is community in action.

That is faith with its sleeves rolled up.

If you haven’t been to The Ivy Table yet, you need to go. Eat there, volunteer there, pay it forward, or just learn more about the work they’re doing.

And if you want to come with me, I would love to take you.