Community Kitchens

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Oakland, CA
Community Kitchens

Community Kitchens is a food justice org providing a free & accessible meal program for Oakland’s unhoused.

05/23/2026

Read the 2025 Impact Report: ckoakland.org/2025-impact-report

Introducing Community Kitchens' 2025 Impact Report, a guide to how CK is helping to build a community where fewer people go hungry, and neighbors lift each other up using the power of a good meal. All the work that our staff and volunteers do– preparing, packaging and distributing meals to the people who need them– goes toward increasing the amount of people we can support, and those numbers are all in this report, including over 200,000 meals distributed in 2025.

Read our impact report to find out about all the different ways we use to get meals into the hands of our clients: through partner organizations, meal distributions at our central kitchens, volunteers on bicycles, and any other method that gets people fed. You can see where the people we feed live, how they fall through the cracks of our traditional food systems, and how a fresh and hearty meal from CK can affect their lives.

We had an amazing 2025, expanding our meal output, finding new distribution channels, and working with the community to provide networks of support for vulnerable people in our community. We promise to keep going in 2026 and beyond, always striving for a healthier, more compassionate, and more delicious Oakland! Thanks to everyone who supported these efforts.

04/16/2026

As a service project for his upcoming Bar Mitzvah, Zeke S. decided to cook a whole bunch of great food for the community! He brought together 30 kids aged 5-15, and over 3 days they made teriyaki chicken, fajitas, cheeseburgers and more, packaged the food into individual meals, and delivered them to Town Fridges. They even included some pet food to help out our furry friends!

What an incredible job by our newest Home Chefs! This is what it looks like to put in the effort to support our East Bay neighborhoods, and the great part is that anyone can follow Zeke's example by cooking their favorite food in their home kitchen. If you want to make an impact like this, become a Home Chef volunteer today! Link in bio.

04/01/2026

We were excited to join Andrew Crispin and team at to tour their site and learn more about their work.

Together we are thrilled to announce we will be working to provide healthy, culturally diverse prepared meals for their very low income seniors who have mobility challenges. By integrating our meals in their existing home delivery program we are effectively growing impact without redundancy. In this moment we need to work creatively to maximize our impact.

03/20/2026

We're proud to announce a brand new Town Fridge that will join our network of accessible fridges for anyone who needs some food support! This Town Fridge is in the heart of Oakland, at .sfbay in the Fruitvale neighborhood. It's a critical, central location, and our Home Chef volunteers and CK Kitchen staff will stock the fridge with amazing prepared meals for people who may not have a kitchen to cook their own.

We partnered with Family Laundry last year to charge CK's electric van at their new charging stations, and we continue to build up our community with new food security resources. Thank you, Family Laundry, for being a true community partner and helping expand access to healthy meals for those that need some help!

03/18/2026

This week, Chef Kendall is serving a recipe he developed at a former restaurant– Miso Braised Beef Short Ribs with Horseradish Mashed Potatoes & Brussel Sprouts. He wanted to share this delicious dish with the people that come to our front door, because not only do they need nutrition and sustenance, they deserve the rich flavors and bright colors of a meal lovingly prepared.

Food of this caliber used to only be available at Oakland's most beloved restaurants, but thanks to Chef Kendall and the rest of the CK Kitchen team, a lot more people have access to unique and mouth-watering dishes like this. Anyone can show up at our doorfront during open hours and get free prepared meals, five days a week, loaded with flavor and nourishment.

CK Doorfront Meal Distribution
2270 Telegraph Ave
Sunday - Thursday, 11am - 2pm

02/11/2026

Celebrating two amazing Black immigrant chefs this last weekend! Our gala auction winners enjoyed a truly Oakland experience featuring an Ethiopian-Dominican collaborative menu from Chef Adiam at and Chef Nelson of And we had a special treat with a performance from Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir a musical treasure in our community. Much gratitude to Kim Thompson and John Bliss for opening their home for us to break bread together while supporting food justice.

Immigrants are an important part of the beauty and vibrancy of our Oakland community. We will always celebrate how food brings us together. We invite you to make a reservation at these amazing restaurants during Black History Month and all year long.

02/03/2026

CK January 2026 Newsletter!
Read about what we build together in 2025. Because of you, Community Kitchens experienced one of the most impactful years in our history. And we're just getting started!

01/12/2026

The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" signed into law in July 2025 includes historic cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) totaling approximately $187 billion through 2034. That's $187 billion of food off the tables of our low income residents. These cuts are expected to reduce or eliminate food assistance for an estimated 4 million people.

At the same time, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) nearly tripled their budget to $29 billion and "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" allocated an additional $75 billion to increase detention capacity and hiring 10,000 ICE officers to track down, arrest and deport immigrants. The total amount directed toward immigration and border enforcement for the next few years is estimated to be over $170 billion.

ICE is now the largest "law enforcement' agency in the US, yet there are serious concerns about oversight and regulation. Last week an ICE officer shot and killed a mom in Minneapolis who was serving as a legal observer. And given chronic food insecurity can take 17 years off someone's life, SNAP cuts are silently killing 4 million people.

We believe our federal government should support food, not ICE. Please sign and share our "Food, Not Ice" petition. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc7xo3gle9D6kwVloiOXhXmJVzW9t3BcgNW6c7etf3Ni8bYOQ/viewform

12/29/2025

🍪🧁Thanks to for providing cupcakes and cookies for our unhoused food distributions over the holidays.

Everyone deserves a sweet treat and our clients were so happy to receive these delicious desserts with our warm meals.

Our community-powered movement feeds our community with dignity and love. Thank You Angel Cakes! 🍪🧁

12/18/2025

At Community Kitchens, we hold a simple belief: everyone deserves a place at the table. Because of you, this belief shows up every day across Oakland.

Not just food—but dignity.
Not just calories—but connection.
A sense of belonging.

Meet Anthony
When Anthony comes to Community Kitchens, he knows he’ll receive a meal that does more than feed him.

Before, much of his limited income went to fast food—whatever he could afford that day. Now, because he can rely on healthy, nourishing meals from Community Kitchens, that money can go toward what really matters.

“One day of food here can stretch into two,” Anthony shared.

“That gives me time. Instead of buying fast food, I can use my money for bus fare, washing my clothes, and getting to the doctor.”

For Anthony, a meal means stability. It means choice. It means a way forward.

As the year comes to a close, rising costs, housing instability, and reductions in government and institutional food support are pushing more neighbors to rely on Community Kitchens than ever before. More people are turning to us for meals they can trust—meals that honor who they are and what they need.

Your year-end gift helps ensure that people like Anthony are not rushed through or overlooked—but welcomed. Please make your gift by December 31 so no one starts the new year without a nourishing meal and a place to belong. CKoakland.org

Address

Oakland, CA
94612

Website

https://www.ckoakland.org/

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