Dozens of restaurants in New York City will participate in the annual Dine Out for Heroes initiative for the Bob Woodruff Foundation on Nov. 11.
On Veteran’s Day, participating restaurants across the city will be donating $1 of every dinner order to the Bob Woodruff Foundation.
Bob Woodruff Foundation (Twitter)
The Bob Woodruff Foundation is a charity that is focused on helping our nation’s injured veterans, service members, families and caregivers. The foundation was co-founded by award-winning television anchor and reporter Bob Woodruff and his family after his injury in Iraq. Since its founding, the organization has invested $45 million, awarded more than 370 grants, and assisted more than 2.5 million veteran families.
The initiative has caught the eye of some New York-based celebrity chefs, including Mario Batali, Alex Guarnaschelli and Geoffrey Zakarian.
This is the 4th year of the campaign and with the help of the celebrity chefs, the word has been quickly spreading.
“We’ve been fortunate to see a growing number of celebrity chefs join our efforts and enlist the participation of others, which has generated excitement,” Bob Woodruff said to Variety. “The event began in Manhattan, yet last year we saw the addition of participants in the boroughs and suburbs. Ultimately, we’d love to see it expand across the country.”
“Dine Out for Heroes is a great way for restaurants to honor those who’ve served while offering diners the opportunity to enjoy a great meal. I am thrilled to lead a culinary council whose goal is to raise awareness for this important initiative,” Guarnaschelli, Executive Chef of Butter Restaurant, said. “November 11th is Veterans Day and if you are planning on going out to dinner, choose a restaurant that is participating in Dine Out For Heroes.”
Taralluci e Vino (Twitter)
With the estimated half-million people who will visit Manhattan to watch the city’s annual Veteran’s Day Parade, restaurants are hoping they will see a spike in reservations.
OpenTable, an online restaurant reservation service company, is a sponsor for the initiative and helps simplify making reservations to the participating restaurants. Window displays will also be provided to restaurants to help entice customers to dine at their location.
“It’s far too easy to forget that we are still a nation at war and the needs of our returning service members, especially those who have been injured, will last for years to come,” Woodruff said. “We owe it to them to recognize their sacrifices and to empower them to succeed. Dine Out for Heroes is a simple way for both restaurants and diners to connect to our cause and keep our veterans front of mind.”
