Greenville's Biggest Hearts Club

One of the best parts about Greenville is that our community is filled with individuals, organizations, and nonprofits that love to give back and make Greenville even better.
While there are dozens of kind-hearted examples, we’re highlighting those that focus on one of OTGG’s favorite ways to spread the love—through food and drink.
We’ve dubbed them part of the *unofficial Greenville’s Biggest Hearts Club.

Words + Images by: Grace Hartley

Bridge City Coffee

Coffee for a cause. Bridge City’s motto is “building value and hope in people through coffee.” In 2021, they partnered with Swamp Rabbit Cafe & Grocery and The Village Grind to create the Bridge Fund Collective. This organization was born with the intention of providing assistance to service industry employees in areas ranging from health, housing, transportation, to education.

How does the Bridge Fund Collective work? You can purchase one (or many) Bridge Cards, gift that card to a friend, and that card can be redeemed for a free coffee at any of the partnering locations. All proceeds from these Bridge Cards will go towards the Bridge Fund.

Jasmine kitchen

An extension of Jasmine Road, Jasmine Kitchen believes “everyone deserves the opportunity to flourish.” The lunch cafe provides a safe space for adult women who are human trafficking survivors and provides them with job training, employment, and other career-building opportunities. 

You can support them by stopping by the bright yellow house on Augusta Road Monday through Friday for soups, salads, sandwiches, and a must-order peanut butter cookie. The menu changes weekly, but it’s always tasty.

Another great way to support the Jasmine Road mission is to volunteer, make a donation, or purchase merchandise from their online store.

Mill Village farms

“Growing Food. Growing Jobs,” is Mill Village Farm’s slogan.  They take vacant land and turn it into gardens so they are able to provide locally-sourced produce to communities that have limited access to fresh foods. They sell their produce at local farmers' markets and through their FoodShare program.

Their FoodShare program is in partnership with FoodShareSC. For just $15, you get a box of fresh and seasonal fruits and veggies, plus recipe cards to ensure you get the most out of your box. Since 2018, they have distributed more than 57,000 fresh food boxes.

As for growing jobs, they empower kids aged 14-18 through their Youth Crew to not only grow farm-fresh foods, but also learn teamwork, leadership, and other basic job skills that will help them gain future employment.

Comal864

Comal 864 serves up Rio Grande Valley-inspired food and sits in the former Woodside Bistro space on Woodside Avenue, and owner Dayna says it’s important for her to continue the legacy that Woodside Bistro started in that space.

Comal has a food fund that you can donate to (you can also donate in person when you dine in), and that food fund supplies community members with two loaded chicken tacos and fills their water bottles up when they come in asking for food.

They also have already served hundreds of hungry community members on holidays for free in their short time open and will put the call out on their Instagram for volunteers to spread the word and help as needed.

Project host

Project Host’s mission reads: “Using food as a tool to nourish the hungry and train the unemployed.” Their goal is to fight food insecurity in greater Greenville by feeding hungry Greenvillians, providing training and education for the unemployed, and paying it forward through their social enterprises, of which there are many.

In addition to their daily soup kitchen, they also have a Cooking for Kids initiative that supplies local after-school programs with hot meals for kids living in food insecurity. As for education, their CC Pearce Culinary School is a six-week program completely funded through scholarships and gives students hands-on cooking and food safety experience to better prepare them for employment opportunities.

That’s still not all. Project Host also recognizes the importance of paying it forward in the community through their HostMobile food truck, their bakery, and their urban garden.

Woodside Bistro

Speaking of Woodside Bistro, upon their 2019 opening, co-owners Ken Frazier and Austyn McGroarty established a Pay it Forward program that first started as a board with vouchers for a free meal. Guests in need of a hot meal could walk in and redeem the card for lunch or dinner, pre-paid for by other generous guests. 

Now in the new expanded location just down the road in Woodside Mill, they’re also taking on larger efforts, such as a recent community fish fry held with Woodside Baptist Church that distributed hot meals and commodity care kits to those in need.

Keep an eye on their social media for ways to get involved.