Jon Bon Jovi helped fund a New Jersey restaurant where people can pay what they can afford or volunteer their time in exchange for a meal. Since opening in Red Bank in 2011, JBJ Soul Kitchen has served more than 275,000 meals while helping people facing hunger, homelessness and other challenges.
The restaurant was created to give people access to fresh, healthy food without making money a requirement. Instead of turning away guests who cannot pay, JBJ Soul Kitchen allows them to volunteer in exchange for a meal.
Those who can afford to contribute may also pay for another person’s meal through its pay-it-forward system.
The project is part of the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, which was established in 2006 to help break the cycle of hunger, poverty and homelessness.
Jon Bon Jovi during Bon Jovi in Concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City – August 1, 1987 at Madison Square Garden in New York.Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
Jon Bon Jovi, the rock singer known for hits such as “Livin’ on a Prayer,” helped bring the idea to life through a restaurant that welcomes people from different backgrounds.
Today, according to James Beard Foundation, JBJ Soul Kitchen operates across New Jersey, including its original Red Bank location, with other sites serving communities in Toms River and at university and community locations. Its work has grown beyond providing meals, with staff members also helping guests find housing, employment, health care and other support.
JBJ Soul Kitchen opened in Red Bank, New Jersey, on Oct. 19, 2011. The idea came from Dorothea Bongiovi, Jon Bon Jovi’s wife and the restaurant’s founder and program director.
She wanted to create a place where people could enjoy a proper restaurant meal without the shame that can sometimes come with asking for food assistance. Rather than operating like a traditional soup kitchen, JBJ Soul Kitchen offers a welcoming dining space where paying guests and people in need can sit together.
The restaurant uses a pay-it-forward model. Guests who can afford to contribute are encouraged to make a donation that helps cover meals for others. Those who cannot pay may volunteer their time to earn their meals.
Volunteer tasks can include sweeping floors, clearing tables, helping with garden work and other maintenance duties. The restaurants also have paid staff, including chefs and kitchen workers, alongside trained volunteers who help with food preparation, serving and washing dishes.
In an Aug. 2025 report, CBS News described the suggested donation at the restaurants as $20 to $30. The amount can vary by location and program, but the main idea remains the same: people should be able to eat even when they cannot afford the suggested contribution.
Dorothea has explained that the model is about giving people a way to take part rather than making them feel that they are simply receiving charity.
“Ours is a model of empowerment,” Bongiovi said. “We’re not here to make somebody feel like, ‘Oh, I’m giving this to you.’ You have earned it.”
Each location serves a chef-prepared, three-course meal. Depending on the menu, guests may receive soup or salad and dessert. The menu changes every two weeks, and the kitchens use fresh ingredients, including produce grown in gardens at some locations.
The goal is to give every guest a meal that feels like a normal restaurant experience. People are not asked to explain their financial situation to earn a place at the table.
JBJ Soul Kitchen Helps Guests Beyond Food Assistance
JBJ Soul Kitchen’s work does not stop when a guest finishes eating. Staff members also help connect people with services that can make their lives more stable.
The restaurant’s community coordinators work with local organizations to help guests deal with problems such as homelessness, mental health challenges, addiction, and unemployment. Support may include finding housing, getting a state identification card, locating job training, or connecting with health and social services.
Dorothea Bongiovi has stressed the importance of building trust before asking people to share personal struggles.
“We’re building relationships. Nobody walks up and says I’m a vet; I have PTSD; I am struggling with addiction and mental health issues. You have to build that safe community, that safe space, and maybe because they feel like they’re part of our community, they’re more open [to sharing what barriers they’re facing].”
The restaurant’s staff and community partners help guests find services that match their needs. At the Toms River location, partnerships have helped create a center where people can seek assistance with food, housing, utility bills, mental health, substance use, domestic violence, health insurance, and job skills.
JBJ Soul Kitchen also works with groups that offer culinary training and employment support. By connecting volunteers with training programs and job opportunities, the restaurant can help people build work experience and take steps toward long-term employment.
The approach also challenges assumptions about who needs help. Some guests have jobs or disabilities, while others face difficult personal or financial circumstances that may not be obvious to people around them.
Bongiovi said 78% of the restaurant’s diners identify as being in need. That means the restaurant’s paying guests can help support people who are dealing with food insecurity simply by taking part in the same dining experience.
The opening of JBJ Soul Kitchen was part of a wider effort by the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation to address poverty and homelessness. Since its establishment in 2006, the foundation has funded housing and hunger projects in 12 states and Washington, D.C.
The project later expanded to Toms River and university settings, including Rutgers–Newark, bringing the pay-it-forward model to more people.
Jon Bon Jovi has remained involved in the work behind the scenes. In an August 2025 CBS News report, chef Emily Yasi recalled seeing him doing outdoor maintenance at the restaurant.
For the singer, the project is also a way to stay connected to the New Jersey community where he grew up. In the same report, he linked the restaurant’s purpose to his song “Who Says You Can’t Go Home.”
The restaurant’s impact has also received outside recognition. JBJ Soul Kitchen was part of the work recognized by the James Beard Foundation’s 2026 Impact Award, which honored the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation.
Related: Johnny Carson gave $5.3 million to the University of Nebraska in 2004; in 2010 his foundation received $156 million from a trust he had set up
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