“Taking Care of Our Own” with Chris Shepherd

The inaugural National Restaurant Workers Day is taking place on December 14, 2022. Click here to learn more.

“Taking care of our own” is the unofficial motto that guides Chris Shepherd’s career. It’s the idea behind everything he stands for and everything his nonprofit group, Southern Smoke, works to achieve.

Shepherd founded Southern Smoke in 2015, originally as a fundraiser to support the National Multiple Sclerosis Society after Shepherd's friend and sommelier Antonio Gianola was diagnosed with the disease. The inaugural Southern Smoke event featured over 20 local chefs and raised more than $100,000 for the organization.

Over the years, Southern Smoke has evolved into a nonprofit organization that supports the mental and physical health of industry professionals in the culinary world. It has raised and granted nearly $10 million in funding for a variety of causes, including providing financial assistance for industry workers in crisis and promoting mental health awareness and resources.

Shepherd, a Beard-winning chef in his own right, currently focuses full-time on Southern Smoke. For Shepherd, “taking care of our own” is no longer just a nice idea. It’s his professional mission.

To kick off National Restaurant Workers Day, a holiday focused on giving back to the people who make restaurants happen, BentoBox is proud to partner with Southern Smoke to deliver aid to food and beverage workers in need. We spoke with Chris Shepherd on why Southern Smoke aligns with the spirit of National Restaurant Workers Day, and what he’d like to see change in the industry.

BentoBox: It’s been more than 5 years since you founded Southern Smoke. What is the organization focused on now?

Shepherd: These days we’re focused on raising awareness about our organization and our cause, so that people in the F&B industry across the country know about us and know we’re here to help if they need it. Our Emergency Relief Fund provides crisis relief to anyone in the food and beverage industry in 50 states, and our mental health program is currently in 6 states, with 2 additional states coming online by the end of the year (although anyone needing mental health assistance in the other 42 states can apply for funds via the Emergency Relief Fund). As that awareness grows, we also need to keep up with the demand, so year-round fundraising is very important to us right now.

What about National Restaurant Workers Day most aligns with the mission of Southern Smoke?

Showing appreciation and raising awareness about the issues facing food and beverage workers is what Southern Smoke is all about.

Restaurant workers have a unique community. There’s this special love we have for each other; an understanding of what we can do together. Understanding it’s not always easy, but you can lean on Southern Smoke when you need it.

Who is Southern Smoke here to help?

Anybody in the food and beverage chain. Simple requirements are that you have to have worked for 6 months and 30 hours a week in the industry.

What are some of the most common crises you’re seeing among restaurant workers?

A lot of it comes down to just money. A lack of funds. Not being able to pay your rent and hoping your car doesn’t break down. Having an emergency and not being able to work, which then snowballs the problem when you fall even further behind your bills. Natural disasters, health issues, domestic abuse, a global pandemic—so many factors contribute to a financial crisis.

I’d like to see mental health get more attention in our industry, too. We work in a very difficult environment that is taxing both mentally and physically. Restaurant workers are usually pretty prideful, and asking for help is hard. At Southern Smoke, we hope to make that easier. It’s a more common and open conversation these days, but it’s still difficult to admit you need help.

You decided to leave Underbelly and focus on the nonprofit full-time this year. What was your reason?

During the start of the pandemic, we really saw the need for Southern Smoke across the country. I realized we needed to push the message harder than we have in the past, since our industry doesn’t have a safety net. Realizing I needed to step back from the day-to-day operations was a hard decision, but Southern Smoke is where I need and want to be.

Since that move, how has your view of the industry changed?

It’s not getting any easier, that's for sure! Cost of goods, supply chain issues, staffing — all those aspects of the business are still brutal. My thinking is, if there is a safety net, and people become aware of it, maybe the staffing and other in-house issues can get easier.

On this inaugural National Restaurant Workers Day, what do you think the restaurant industry can be doing to show their appreciation to employees?

Probably the biggest thing would be offering proper health insurance. Yes, it’s costly, but worth it for your employees' state of mind. It also tends to drop your turnover rate. Same thing for offering a 401k program.

But again, right now, it’s not about paying your employees more, it’s about making sure they stick around and are happy health-wise.

Since COVID, restaurants have had trouble attracting workers. What do you think caused this big exodus from the industry?

I absolutely wish we knew the answer to that question. Where did the workers go? I don’t know. How do we get them back? I have no idea. But I do think it’s a huge sign that our industry needs to change.

I do think offering benefits like health insurance, 401k, and paid holidays would help. Other businesses had more to offer to restaurant workers, including safety. So that’s where they went.

Over the course of my career, I think the industry has improved. But we have a long way to go. We need to do more for workers.

Learn more about National Restaurant Workers Day on BentoBox. Click here to learn more about Southern Smoke, and please consider making a donation.

“Taking Care of Our Own” with Chris Shepherd

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