Second try at Socialist “pay-what-you-can” cafe

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon Foundation,

In 2011, a visionary restaurant was launched in NE Portland that allowed guest to pay only what they could afford. Rich customers would pay more than normal so that poor customers could pay less than normal. The anti-Capitalism idea failed in five years.

Now new visionaries wish to try it again. A Portland couple concerned about the ability of everyone in the city to dine with dignity launched a pay-what-you-can café called Makin’ Groceries at 7137 N.E. Freemont St. And money to covers the costs of feeding those who can’t afford to pay will be generated by its moonlight operation, a fine dining establishment called Parish. Both the café and the dinner restaurant, co-owned by Jade Fenton and her husband, Paul Lewis, will feature Cajun food.

The first pay-as-you-can restaurant, Panera Cares Cafe, failed because customers did not want to eat next to homeless and near-homeless people taking advantage of a good deal. Also, customers who paid less felt stigmatized. One customer who paid less was threatened that they abused the system and would be charged more the second time. The whole environment was of confusion and consternation. Panera Cares Cafe’s anti-Capitalism experiment not only failed in Portland but also in progressive cities of Boston and New Orleans.

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