Like a lot of us, Eli Goldman was sent to work from home indefinitely at the start of the pandemic.
While at home one day, he heard a story about Italians lowering baskets of food from their balconies to feed their neighbors.
He looked around his own third-floor apartment in Astoria, Queens, and thought he could do something similar.
Goldman told Good Morning America, "I realized I could do the same in Astoria. So I started baking bread and lowering it in a basket, and anyone who wanted to buy it from the street, could. I would then donate 100 percent of that money."
It wasn't long before Goldman moved from bread to barbecue, and he started to grow a following.
Now, people line up around the block for a taste of Tikkun BBQ, and every food item, served from his balcony, comes with a suggested donation, which is given to a local charity.
Two years later, Tikkun BBQ serves up to 100 people at a time, and has raised over $90,000 for charity!
As for the name, Goldman explains, "Tikkun comes from 'tikkun olam,' which in Judaism, means help repair the world
And while he knows he won't be able to repair all of the world's problems with just barbecue, Goldman says, "To me, that meaning means that it is my responsibility to do whatever I can to help support my community."
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