Inside the pleasingly fragrant cafe, So All May Eat(SAME) in downtown Denver ,t he spirit of generosity is instantly noticeable: donation box stands in place of a cash register customers here pay only what they can afford, no questions asked. A risky business plan, perhaps, but SAME Café has done one unchangeable thing i n the MileHigh City for six years: Open only at midday, the restaurant allows p oor local customers who cannot pay to work as volunteers instead. They can act as waitersandwaitresses,anddishwashers, or look after the buildings and equipment for the cafe.It’s based on trust, and it’s working all right”, says co-owne r Brad Birky, who started the caféin 2006. Previously volunteering at soup kitc hens, the Birkys were dissatisfied with the often unhealthy meals they served t here. “We wanted to offer quality food in a restaurant where every-one felt co mfortable,regardless of their circumstances,” Birky says. SAME’s special lunc h menu changs daily and most food materials are natural and grown by local farm ers. The café now averages 65 to 70 customers (and eight volunteers) a day. And the spirit of generosity behind the project appears to be spreading. In early 2007,one volunteer who hadcleared snow for his meals during the long winter sai d goodbye to the Birkys.He said he was going to New Orleans to help with the hu rricane clearing up,” says Birky. 小题1:What can we learn about the soup kitchens the Birkys previously worked for?
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