Bayleys Wānaka and Food for Love are looking for local restaurants who want to take part in the first-ever ‘Plate Up For Love’ fundraiser in Wānaka next month. 

During November, participating restaurants will include a ‘Plate Up’ dish on their menu and every time that dish is ordered, a portion of the purchase price will be donated to Food for Love - helping the organisation to continue delivering free, home-cooked meals to people in need.

Food for Love general manager Jodie Stuart said the idea was based on a successful initiative in Christchurch but it had been given a Wānaka spin. 

“We want to get as many restaurants on board as possible,” Jodie said. 

Restaurants have creative freedom over what they ‘Plate Up’ - it can be anything from a seasonal special, a new menu item or a favourite dish from their existing menus. 

They will need to display what the contribution to Food for Love will be, with a minimum contribution of $2.50 recommended. 

There are also prizes donated by Bayleys Wānaka up for grabs for both restaurants and customers, with four $200 restaurant vouchers available for customers, and a staff shout of $1,500 for the restaurant which raises the most money (at a participating restaurant of their choice). 

Food for Love is a registered charitable trust and its partnerships with businesses, community organisations and individuals - plus its committed legion of volunteers - enable it to deliver up to 100 meals per week to people in the community. 

Jodie said the organisation was keen to partner with more local businesses and pointed to the collaboration with Bayleys Wānaka as an example of how they are able to be creative with their business partnerships.

“There are all sorts of fun and different ways for businesses to support us,” she said. 

Demand for Food for Love’s meals have increased 382 percent since 2020 and co-founder Bex Sarginson said the last quarter of the year tended to be the organisation’s busiest, which means the Plate Up for Love collaboration would be timely.

“Last Christmas we delivered 200 Christmas dinners and that push will start soon,” Bex said.

“It’s a busy few months coming up.”

Interested restaurants should contact Ànna Schryvers at Bayleys Wānaka ([email protected] or phone 03 443 0261).

Learn more about Food for Love, including information on how to nominate someone to receive a meal, volunteering opportunities, and other ways to contribute, here.

PHOTO: Wānaka App