This Pakistani Restaurant in US is Giving Free Food to the Homeless Citizens
In the down in the north-west streets of Washington DC, Kazi Mannan is a Pakistani immigrate who runs his own restaurant that offers free meals to people in need. Kazi is a Pakistan-born Muslim American who no longer worries about making his ends meet. Instead, he wants to help people the only way he knows how.
He Started from Humble Beginnings
Kazi was born in a small village of Pakistan called Kuri Shareef. Kazi Mannan had not seen many facilities while growing up. They had no electricity, no running water, no education, and a big family to support. To become the bread-winner, he decided to get out of the country and explore new opportunities for jobs that paid well at that time. So, he flew to the US.
Luck met him when his visa for the US got accepted and he came to America with only $3 in his pocket. That’s when he started working as a cashier at a gas station, 7 days a week with two shifts that lasted 16 hours a day. With every penny he earned, he sent it to his father.
Soon, his prayers and hard work took charge and he started earning a lot when he started driving a limousine to offer luxury rides to customers. “I earned a hell lot of money. And Back when I used to drive a limousine, I saw a lot of homeless people looking for food through the trash can. It would break my heart,” he told the reporters.
“I used to see my mother, how she would cook. And even when we were very poor, she would share the food with the neighbors,” he continued.
Inspired by his mother’s example to help others, he too wished that he could have a restaurant of his own and feed those who are hungry and homeless.
“I would pray to God that if I ever have a restaurant, I would announce it the first day that homeless people are welcome in my restaurant. I would say, ‘You are welcome to eat free with respect and dignity. You can come in hundreds, I will never say no. Please don’t look through trash cans. Come, eat here free,” he added.
https://www.facebook.com/HeartThreadsDocs/videos/677591689286149/
A Humble Master Chef
Kazi Mannan used to cook at his US home all the time. He started receiving compliments from his room mate and that’s when he decided to open a restaurant of his own.
He stayed true to his promise, and at the opening day of the restaurant, he brought a lot of homeless from the park to give them full respect and food.
“I introduced myself and said, ‘This is your restaurant.’ A lot of them thought it was a trick, he says. ‘I told them, believe me, till I am alive and I own this restaurant, you are my guests, like a paying guest.’
He assured them that they will never face any disrespect there and will be treated as a customer who pays. “We will take care of you as our own, like a paying guest,” he told them.
The Sakina Halal Grill
“That’s the philosophy I inherited from my mom: sharing whatever you have.” He changed the restaurant’s named as ‘Sakina Halal Grill’, naming it after his mother.
According to sources, the Sakina Halal Grill currently provides 16,000 meals to the homeless each year. Which means that by the end of 2018, the Sakina Grill will feed about 80,000 people who are needy for food.
“I also honored her by bringing her recipes to this restaurant, with her name,” he added. “My philosophy is if you want to worship God, you have to show kindness to His creation. Worship is not just that you isolate yourself in the temple, mosque, or church.”
“Worship is a lot of action. He created us to treat each other with kindness and love. Just lay on your back and think how God wants us to love each other. It will become a beautiful world,” he says.
“Just lay on your back and think how God wants us to love each other. It will become a beautiful world,” he concluded.
