We didn't think twice about Campanile's $18 prix fixe offer for WGA strikers. Everyone will eventually capitalize on the strike, even if it's just a publicity stunt masked as good will. But calling the special the "Writers Soup Kitchen," is that crass? One reader thinks so. This letter to Campanile management made its way to us:
I enjoy your restaurant, and I appreciate your offer of a special discounted meal during the WGA strike. But I think it's in very poor taste to call the program a 'soup kitchen,' and I'm surprised by your lack of judgment. As you probably know, people who soup kitchens serve are extremely poor and usually homeless. They suffer daily deprivation beyond the experience of anyone who's ever sat down at Campanile. To refer to an $18 meal as a 'soup kitchen' shows an insensitivity to the serious need you could probably find within a block of La Brea. It's particularly alarming to see one of the finest and most expensive restaurants in town glibly offering a 'soup kitchen' just before Thanksgiving, when every *real* soup kitchen in LA will be full of people hoping to get a very simple hot meal-- for them a rare and small pleasure. Please consider issuing an apology, or at least changing the name of this program.We think someone's taking things a bit too seriously, but we get his point. Maybe Campanile can call it the WGA "Please Strike a Deal Before We End Up in a Real Soup Kitchen" special? Now that's just wrong.
· Campanile Opens WGA Soup Kitchen [The Knife]
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