RAPID CITY, S.D. – Fork Real Community Café is holding its main fund-raising event in October to help fund the non-profit’s unique mission – ensuring all the right to dine with dignity as a pay-what-you-can café fighting food insecurity in western South Dakota.

“We’re meant to be for the whole community,” Rhonda Pearcy, Founder of Fork Real Community Café said. “We have people that can pay for a meal, we have people that can’t pay for a meal, we have people that pay a little more for their meal to help pay for others.”

Located at 507 Main Street, Fork Real Community Café serves between 150 and 300 people a week, serving breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday.

Funding comes from a variety of source – a food truck, catering, the café – but fundraising is an important piece of the funding puzzle.

The 5th Annual Chef’s Dinner Auction fundraiser will be held on Thursday, October 15, at 5 p.m. at the GenPro Building, located at the Central States Fairgrounds. All proceeds from this special event go to support Fork Real Community Café in its mission to strengthen the community through food and education opportunities.

“If (you) love our community and love food and want to support and be able to empower people, come join us,” Pearcy said. 

Each dining experience is provided and prepared by the talented chefs participating in this year’s Chef’s Dinner Auction, making for a memorable evening of great food, community, and support for Fork Real Community Cafe.

“We have local chefs, whether they work locally here in restaurants or they just have a passion for food that they love to make and teach,” Pearcy said. “The chefs will be auctioning off their meals (and) people get to bid on a variety of food options.”

Pearcy said this year’s featured experiences for the 200 people expected to attend include a shrimp boil, a five-course meal prepared in your home, and – back by popular demand – the famous smoked alligator.

“It has grown. It’s just different,” Pearcy said. “Where else do you get smoked alligator?”

Early-bird tickets are available now through Sept. 12. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit forkrealcafe.org/fundraiser or reach out to the Café by calling 605-718-5020.

Fork Real Café has been serving the community for the past decade since its incorporation in 2016 and first location at the Creamery Building. In 2018, the café relocated to St. Joseph Street and was there for seven years before moving to their current location at 507 Main Street.