A recipe for helping others
A restaurant owner has made it his goal to help the homeless by providing free meals. Now, the kindness of strangers is keeping his good work going
Three dirty-faced men dressed in grimy rags shuffled into the Pei Ho Barbecue Restaurant in Sham Shui Po. One was obviously drunk as they sat down at a large round table.
But instead of kicking them out, owner Chan Cheuk-ming called each by name and greeted them with a smile. "What'd you like? Maybe rice?"
Soon, steaming plates of rice with meat and soft steamed buns were on the table. The three men ate then shuffled out the door.
Chan had let them eat free - and it wasn't the first time he had treated someone to a hot meal.
"I remember what being poor felt like," he said, smiling a little.
His restaurant, with 21 staff, has been giving free meals to the homeless every Saturday for close to 18 months, while serving affordable meals to poor locals. He accepts meal-box sponsors from the public, and will help organise food giveaways with anyone who is interested. Through his business, dubbed the "restaurant with a heart", Chan has garnered global support as word of his kind-hearted deeds spread through social media then newspapers and magazines.
A women's organisation in Italy gave money to his cause. A woman from Australia has also been sending money to sponsor meal boxes for the homeless.