The sun wasn’t even up when the doors of New Mexico Baptist Disaster Relief’s new Quick Response Kitchen opened to prepare food for the first time.
On its maiden voyage in February, the QRK and four chefs prepared and served about 300 breakfast burritos, the first 150 going to attendees at the New Mexico Evangelism Conference at Sandia Baptist Church Albuquerque.
The second 150 went to The Rock at Noon Day for people experiencing homelessness.
The QRK is the state convention’s first quick-response mobile kitchen. As the name implies, it is designed to set up and provide meals quickly.
The 8.5 by 20-foot trailer is a fully functional kitchen, similar to a food truck, with a refrigerator and chest freezer to store food and serve in disaster and rural areas where food cannot be purchased.
The QRK also has a six-burner range and oven, convection oven and three-foot-long griddle.
Along with its electric and water hook-ups the QRK can self-sustain for short periods using a water reservoir and generator.
Thanks to a three-sink setup, the mobile kitchen can clean and sanitize dishes and does not require an outside kitchen.
The QRK has three serving windows with exterior overhangs and counters for customers.
Although interior space is limited to about four chefs, the unit can cook and serve up to 750 meals a day when fully stocked and staffed.
For two days, March 10–12, the QRK had a road test for its second outing, a trip to Las Vegas. There, the crew fed medical staff at mini-MOM (Mission of Mercy) organized by Remote Area Medical.
The state convention plans to deploy the QRK to events and disasters within one day’s drive from the kitchen’s home base in Albuquerque. Given its design and limitations, The convention foresees using the QRK primarily to address in-state needs, but it also could serve neighboring states.
For more information contact Cricket Pairett at cpairett@bcnm.com or Ed Greene at disasterrelief@bcnm.com.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by A. Plummer and originally published by the Baptist New Mexican.
