Soul Food House Gives Back with Its Buy a Bento, Share a Bento Campaign

This is a family-owned restaurant in the heart of Tokyo with a mission to bring the most authentic American Southern and Cajun cuisine to the hearts and stomachs of Tokyoites. Soul Food House has recently started a new “Buy a Bento, Share a Bento” campaign to reach out to the community, and to help you lend a hand to those in need.

Home Cooking Done Right

The husband and wife team of David and LaTonya Whitaker opened Soul Food House more than five years ago. Both coming from the South, their love of Southern comfort food sparked the start of the restaurant.

LaTonya is proud of the cozy space at Soul Food House, which she wittily described as a “pocket dimension.” It means that it doesn’t matter what’s outside—as soon as you enter the restaurant, you will be transported back to a family kitchen filled with grandma’s home-cooked meals.

And that feeling doesn’t end with the food and the atmosphere. It is also filled with people—a broad spectrum of Tokyo’s expat community. Even if you don’t hail from the South—or the United States, for that matter—if you’d like to get a taste of authentic Southern cuisine, you should drop in. Highlights of their menu include mac & cheese, pulled pork, and fried catfish with Creole and Cajun seasoning.

“Big Mama” Meal

LaTonya is well known for having a big heart. She would happily cook a meal for someone who is in trouble financially. Especially during this difficult time, when losing a job or taking a pay cut is common, she felt the need to be the “Big Mama” of the community. Whether you are a university student or a worker, Japanese or foreigner, LaTonya and Soul Food House welcome you with open arms and a free meal of your choice! Her compassion stems from her own difficult experiences, when she and David were homeless and had less than ¥10,000 when they first came to Japan. Having worked her way from almost nothing to this amazing restaurant, she sympathizes with those who are suffering from the effects of the pandemic. Even if this just means a simple free meal, she would gladly do it.

Buy a Bento, Share a Bento Campaign

In an effort to serve the community more during the Covid-19 era, Soul Food House has launched a Buy A Bento, Share A Bento campaign.

When you buy one of their bentos, you can opt to pay it forward and buy another for someone in need. The method is fairly simple. You can donate as much as you want. For example, you can buy five bentos and donate three bentos, or vice versa. These bentos make for perfect lunches at companies, schools, or embassies. The campaign is currently supporting two different groups of people. Soul Food House is providing bentos to the homeless through the Tokyo Baptist Church. And they’re helping single mothers who don’t have time to prepare hot meals for the kids. Soul Food House will either give them bentos or cook them customized meals. What LaTonya most wants to get out of this campaign is to reach out to the community as much as possible. She especially wants to target Japanese people, who are often hesitant to ask for help. She hopes the money raised from this campaign will help her reach out to those in need.

If you want to enjoy authentic American food from the South and give back to the community at the same time, go to soulfoodhouse.com or call them at 03-5765-2148