Andrew – Guest

Andrew first came to FoodCycle after being made redundant from his job as a nightclub security guard during the pandemic, in 2021.

He lives alone and found he was struggling to pay for food towards the end of the month, after paying bills. 

He says coming to FoodCycle has helped him find new friends and connection in his community, as well as saving money on the cost of a meal each week. 

How long have you been coming to FoodCycle? 

I’ve been coming for around four years. 

What brought you to FoodCycle in the first place, and what were your first impressions? 

I got recommendation from a friend of mine, so we met there one day, and I just liked the atmosphere. I liked the food that was served, I liked the people there, and then after that I just started going on a regular basis. 

I used to be a security guard for nightclubs. Then when the recession came in during COVID, a lot of the jobs I had all fell away so became unemployed, and I went on benefits. 

I found when it came to paying bills that I was struggling a bit, and I ended up paying the bills, but I didn’t always have enough money left for food, towards the end of the month.  

My friend recommended I come to the FoodCycle meal on a Friday. We met there, we had a chat and then we started chatting with other people. 

I decided to carry on going because I found it just a nice friendly community. Being a former security guard, I’m a friendly open person I’m always happy to chat, and try to help others if I can. 

There’s a nice atmosphere, it’s a clean environment, and the food and the coffee is always excellent!  

What do you like about the FoodCycle meals? What keeps you coming back?  

At FoodCycle it’s a vegetarian meal, I’m not vegetarian, but I do like the meals. Every week there’s always something different on the menu, and it tends to cater for all walks of life. 

Sometimes you might have a curry, sometimes you might have a stew, or vegetarian sausages and things like that, the puddings are nice, and you always get a nice starter.  

The food is a big part of what brings me here, plus there are people I’ve got to know, who I see there once a week, that I know that I can have a chat and a catch up with, and it’s a good, friendly environment. 

I live on my own, but I don’t feel lonely because I’ve got lots of hobbies that keep me busy at home, and I pop out to see people, and come to things like this. 

There’s lots of different people who come along. We have some single mums who come during the school holidays when they’re finding it that hard to feed the kids, so they bring the children. 

What difference has coming to FoodCycle made to your life?  

One of the reasons I came is I was struggling to pay the bills, and money gets a bit tight sometimes.  

When you come to FoodCycle, you get to meet new people and make new friends, you can sit and have a chat and you also get a free meal, which is one meal you don’t have to cook for yourself. 

I think FoodCycle is like medicine for the community.  

When people come in, they might be worried or have problems in their life, but they come in and have some food, and sit down and have a chat about what’s being going on through the week, and they feel better. 

You’re saving on the cost of a meal, you’re saving the on cost of electricity at home, and you’re saving on the cost of gas as you’re not cooking. So you are saving a few quid, and at the same time you’re getting a nice social event, you’re having a chat and meeting new friends. 

So it works on a few different levels, it helps you with socialising and saving on costs.  

It’s encouraged me to cook different things with vegetables too, when I cook at home. I tend to buy the cheaper items, and I shop around and go to markets to find good deals. 

I didn’t used to eat a lot of couscous, but now I tend to eat a bit more couscous, and I add things to it for flavour, so that can turn that cous cous into two meals, so I’m economising what I’m doing, but also enjoying the flavours.  

Do you find you’ve connected with other members of the community at FoodCycle? 

Yes. I’ve met new friends there, I’ve connected with a lot of people who I chat with, and there’s a lot of friendly banter with the volunteers too. We all have laugh and a joke, and you feel better afterwards. 

Do you have any favourite meals that you’ve enjoyed at FoodCycle? 

I don’t think I have any favourite meals, they’re all very good quality. I like the fruit crumbles, and all the soups are generally nice – they vary that each week, so you never know what you’re going to get.  

The main meal can be anything, depending on whatever fresh ingredients they get in – one week it might be a curry, and another something with tomatoes, or cous cous and salad, so there’s no repetition and it’s always very good.  

I really enjoy when we have a Christmas dinner, with all the roasted vegetables and vegetarian turkey and vegetarian sausages. That is really nice. 

What would you say to other people thinking about coming along to a FoodCycle meal? 

Go and try FoodCycle at least once. You will enjoy the meal, the people are so friendly, and they always try to cheer you up!