Our Daily Bread
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Mission Statement
Mission: All are welcome to enjoy a hot meal, access services, and connect with each other. Vision: A safe space where all are nourished and belong.
About This Cause
Our Daily Bread Soup Kitchen and Social Center (ODB) is Cincinnati’s largest soup kitchen. Since 1985, we have provided meals to people in need in Cincinnati’s Over the Rhine neighborhood, primarily people experiencing homelessness. Every bite of food we serve is rescued or donated. ODB practices what we call “radical hospitality,” welcoming all to join us for a hot meal in a safe environment with no barriers to service. Our mission is fulfilled through four pillars: 1) Provide nutritious meals to people in need. 2) Rescue good food that would otherwise go to waste. 3) Provide a meaningful volunteer experience. 4) Provide a safe space for people experiencing homelessness to gather during the day when shelters are closed. There are three interconnected components of our work at ODB: 1) Soup Kitchen: Since 1985, we have provided hot, nutritious meals five days a week to people who lack a safe way to cook or store food, primarily the 70% of our guests who are experiencing homelessness. We serve 400-500 guests each day, and guests can go through the serving line as many times as they need to get their fill. Guests in our dining room enjoy a full, sit-down dining experience with real plates, forks, and volunteers to serve food and bus tables when guests finish eating. In addition, guests “on the go” can visit our to-go window for bagged lunches, coffee, meals, and snacks for later. 2) Social Center: Our guiding value at ODB is radical hospitality. We provide nutritious, home-cooked meals, but more than that, we provide meals in a safe, friendly space where all are welcome and there are no barriers to accessing services. We ensure that guests are greeted by friendly staff who get to know them, their belongings are safely stored during their visit, and they have structured opportunities to connect with others. We are proud that 87% of guests visit us at least 2-4 times per week, and another 93% say that ODB feels like home. We also recognize that many of our guests have needs that go beyond a hot meal. Our staff assess guests' needs, respond to requests for additional support, and connect them to external resources as needed. Each day, one or two agencies set up a table in our dining room so that guests can build relationships with outreach workers and take advantage of their services: mental healthcare, case management, addiction recovery, and more. 3) Food Rescue/Green Efforts: 100% of our food is rescued (65%) or donated (35%). Last year, we saved 143,006 pounds of good food that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill and transformed it into meals. The food we serve comes from restaurants, stores and manufacturers and is delivered to our door by volunteers. We get surplus food that needs to be moved quickly, the end cuts of meat and the remainder of fruit after the choice cuts are taken, excess food prepared by caterers or restaurants, day-old donuts/baked goods, and dairy approaching its expiration date. We keep good food on plates where it belongs, not in the trash.