Chef Charlie Palmer and Team Deliver Meals to Homebound Elderly New Yorkers

Chefs from Aureole, Charlie Palmer Steak NY and Upper Story pitch in to provide 400 meals to Citymeals on Wheels recipients

(June 7, 2016 – New York, NY) – Frail aged New Yorkers in Midtown were happy to find Chefs Charlie Palmer, Marcus Ware of Aureole, Ryan Lory of Charlie Palmer Steak NY, Adin Langille of Charlie Palmer at the Knick, Jeffrey Russell of Charlie Palmer Steak DC and Jennifer Day of Upper Story by Charlie Palmer at their front door to deliver a special meal as part of the Chefs Deliver for Citymeals program.

A Citymeals on Wheels initiative, Chefs Deliver brings together a rotating cast of culinary stars who, once a month, lend their talents to Citymeals – cooking and often personally delivering the meals to the doors of New Yorkers who are too frail to shop and cook for themselves. Chefs Deliver was launched in January 2014 by Citymeals Board of Directors Co-President Chef Daniel Boulud and Citymeals Board Member Chef Charlie Palmer.

For today's delivery, Aureole provided 200 meals while Charlie Palmer Steak NY and Upper Story each provided 100 meals. Aureole served a classic chicken fricassee with quinoa, broccoli and potatoes. Charlie Palmer Steak NY cooked up a hearty dry aged meat loaf with sautéed mushrooms, mashed potatoes and gravy and Upper Story prepared panko chicken with ratatouille and sweet potato puree for the seniors.

Chefs Palmer, Ware, Lory, Langille, Russell and Day then personally delivered some of the meals to isolated older Midtown residents along with Beth Shapiro, Executive Director of Citymeals. The remainder of the meals was delivered to Citymeals recipients throughout Staten Island.

"With the hot, humid days upon us, many of our recipients find it even more difficult to leave their apartments," noted Shapiro. "These special deliveries are just one way of making sure these homebound elderly have human contact, since, for many, this might be the only person they see all day. Thank you Chefs for your help delivering these meals today and a special thank you to Charlie, Marcus and Ryan for participating in yesterday’s Chefs' Tribute to Citymeals on Wheels!"

More than fifty legendary chefs gathered on Monday, June 6th for ¡Qué rico! Celebrating Latino Cuisine & Culture: The 31st Annual Chefs' Tribute to Citymeals on Wheels. These culinary stars celebrated the rich flavors of Latino cooking as they created dishes at tasting stations throughout the Rockefeller Center Plaza. The highly anticipated event raised over $900,000 for Citymeals on Wheels to prepare and deliver nutritious meals for homebound elderly New Yorkers.

Citymeals on Wheels prepares and delivers weekend, holiday and emergency meals for over 18,000 homebound elderly New Yorkers. More than 60 percent of Citymeals recipients are over 80 years old; 23 percent are over 90; more than 200 have lived at least a century. All recipients are chronically disabled by conditions such as vision loss, diabetes, arthritis and heart disease. Nearly all need assistance walking. It is estimated that 66 percent use a cane, 39 percent use a walker and 16 percent use a wheelchair. Citymeals recipients are also isolated: 57 percent live alone; 40 percent rarely or never leave their homes; 8 percent have no one with whom they can talk. Many are also at risk for malnutrition.

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About Citymeals on Wheels: Citymeals on Wheels (citymeals.org) provides a continuous lifeline of nourishing meals and vital companionship to New York City’s homebound elderly. Working in partnership with community-based organizations and senior centers, Citymeals prepares and delivers over 2 million weekend, holiday and emergency meals for more than 18,000 of our frail aged neighbors each year. Last year, over 15,000 individuals volunteered nearly 69,000 hours of their time.

Since its founding in 1981, Citymeals has relied on the generosity of its Board of Directors, the City of New York, sponsors and other designated gifts to cover administrative costs. This ensures that 100% of all public donations will be used entirely for the preparation and delivery of meals.