University Community Social Services

Our History University Community Social Services was founded in 1982 by two university professors who saw a great need among the many homeless people in their neighborhood. Together they started a temporary - or so they thought - soup kitchen open to anyone who needed sustenance.

Over 25 years later, we’re still going strong, and the need is still great. Long ago, we figured out that meatloaf is a nourishing comfort food that makes a much better meal than soup. We make our meatloaf using an original recipe that we have perfected over the years. People love it, and we have come over time to be known as "The Meatloaf People." Hunger doesn't take a vacation. Every week since our inception, through blackouts, heat waves, blizzards, and even the terrorist attack of 9-11, the kitchen has been there, serving literally hundreds of thousands of meals to needy New Yorkers.

Our Philosophy We've learned that just as good food nourishes the body, respect nourishes the soul. Our soup kitchen was one of the first to seat and serve its guests with the courtesy one might find at a restaurant, as opposed to the traditional food line. Despite our name, we are not affiliated with any university nor are we associated with any religious organization. Our volunteers come from all walks of life, bound together only by our shared desire to lend a helping hand to those in need.