Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free!
Emma Lazarus
Emma's Torch, a restaurant that doubles as a classroom for recent immigrants, will be opening its doors officially this Mother's Day, Sunday May 13th in their brand new home at 345 Smith Street.
The new eatery will offer New American Cuisine, inspired by its students. (See a sample menu here.)
Besides great food, Emma's Torch offers so much more. Through its eight-week, paid apprenticeship program that includes English language classes, the non-for profit social enterprise helps refugees find meaningful jobs in the culinary industry.
The restaurant and the program were founded by Kerry Brodie, who not only graduated from the Institute of Culinary Education, but also holds a Masters in Government from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelors in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University. The restaurant got its start as a pop-up in Red Hook and found its permanent home in Carroll Gardens when it took over the former Wilma Jean space on Smith Street at the corner of Carroll Street.
Fittingly, the name of the restaurant is a tribute to Emma Lazarus, a poet and advocate on behalf of refugees, whose famous words are inscribed on the base of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor.
To make a reservation, click here.
Please join me in welcoming this very special new business to the neighborhood.
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