(Photo by World Central Kitchen via Facebook)

(Photo by World Central Kitchen via Facebook)

D.C. chef José Andrés is proving he’s passionate about feeding people—and not just through one of his many acclaimed restaurants. As Puerto Rico continues to recover from the devastating Hurricane Maria, Andrés has spent the past week on site, mobilizing chefs and volunteers around the island.

Andrés, who was born in Spain and became a U.S. citizen in 2013, is working with his World Central Kitchen non-profit to cook and donate meals in the capital city of San Juan and beyond. The charity is funded through donations (and events like the annual Dine-N-Dash here in D.C.). Everything from paella to sandwiches and stews is being shipped out through food trucks and any available transportation. Plenty of other chefs have joined in the effort, which is being organized through the #ChefsForPuertoRico hashtag.

The American island is still debilitated after Maria struck on September 20. Gov. Ricardo Rosselló said at a news conference on Monday that about half of households have running water currently, and only about a quarter are expected to have power back by next month. The official death toll is expected to rise significantly after bureaucracy on the island gets the the death registry system back on track—it’s one of many Puerto Rican services that is not up and running.

The number of meals delivered by Andrés and his nonprofit has been on a steady rise as more resources come online. Andrés has been tweeting regular progress to his many followers, posting videos and updates on the team’s location and needs.

Tens of thousands of meals have already been dolled out, with a goal of 100,000 daily by the end of the week.

Several of Andrés’ tweets included not-so-subtle digs at President Donald Trump, too—something Washingtonian documented in detail. While Andrés has been on the island since last week, Trump will arrive for a brief visit today.

The Washington Post even tagged Andrés as the face of American disaster relief (he also traveled to Houston after Hurricane Harvey). Andrés has restaurants in Puerto Rico too, but it’s clear all that is secondary as long as there are hungry people in need.

Filed Under: food, food news, Hurricane Maria, jose andres, puerto rico, world central kitchen,