Ricci Neer has been in the kitchen since she was eight years old. Fast forward, she's now sharing her love for cooking with her community.
In 2019, Neer opened Comanche Cafe, 322 North Staples Street, just five months from a global pandemic hit. With the restaurant's success coming from the support of the community, Neer was able to keep the doors open for three years. She decided she needed a change of scenery and relocated to a building at 555 North Carancahua Street, changing the name to Taste at 555.
Within the past several years, Neer, just like many other business owners, have been faced with the effects of skyrocketing groceries and products. Neer told Neighborhood News Reporter Alexis Scott that she's had to change the price of some of her most popular items, including her Brisket kolaches. The price to make one went from $3.50, then $3.89, then $5 and now $6.95. She's even thinking of raising the price again in order to make the kolaches profitable.
Neer realized she isn't the only one dealing with the challenge of price gouging and decided to help others dealing with the same concern. She officially launched Community Kitchen CC in February. The restaurant is inside First United Methodist Church on South Shoreline.
“Groceries are prohibitively expensive and I thought, ‘Am I going to keep raising prices or am I going to develop a plan to possibly help the community," Neer questioned to herself.
Community Kitchen CC is a cafeteria-style restaurant space, but it's mission is to offer affordable scratch meals to the public while discreetly supporting those in need through complimentary food services.
“I really want people to feel like they know that it came from someone who had the intentions to make them feel loved and to make them feel nourished," Neer added.
Aside from the magnificent aromas coming from the kitchen, Neer is also scooping up a side of program initiatives that will support the community.
The Latchkey Kids Program is still in the works but is being designed to provide meals to middle and high school students who are home alone after school. Neer is also planning to launch her Pay It Forward Program at the end of the month. The program initiative will provide one hot meal every day that will not only support the Latchkey Kids Program but will be available for late pickups to deliver to families and individuals facing crisis.
However, one project is particularly special to Neer. It's the D-Cup (Donation Cup) Soup Program. She started it back in 2019 at Comanche Cafe and kept it going for nearly 8 months. She took a break and is relaunching it.
Neer told Scott the program was originally designed to support women in safe harbor from domestic violence. The D-Cup Soup Program was expanded to women in hospice, undergoing chemotherapy, who are pregnant, or who are new mothers.
“A woman in crisis, her caretaker, her family member can come get a hot cup of soup for her and just take that home and just love on her and nurture her until she’s at the point where she’s strong enough," Neer said.
Also, Neer said she purchases the majority of her ingredients from farmers and food distributors across the Coastal Bend in an effort to support other local businesses. She wants to partner with other organizations and local school districts to expand Community Kitchen CC and its programs. She'll need some hands to help her. If you want to be a volunteer or Delivery Angel, reach out to Neer on the Community Kitchen website. You can also donate on the website as well.
Once Community Kitchen CC has been running for a while, Neer said she will begin the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) organization.
“This is a ministry, and I want it to stay a ministry, and I want people to taste the love in our food," Neer added.
The kitchen is currently open Tuesday-Friday 8 am-2 pm and Sunday 8 am-2 pm at 900 South Shoreline.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
