Investing in Breadwinners. Transforming Lives.
Since 2008, Hot Bread Kitchen has empowered New Yorkers who face barriers to economic opportunities through transformative careers in New York City’s food industry. We offer job skills training, customized job placement, food entrepreneurship programs, and an ecosystem of wraparound support, opening pathways to economic mobility for New Yorkers across the five boroughs who face barriers to employment. A growing and opportunity-rich sector, the food industry provides a desired and accessible entry point to the workforce for the communities we serve.
We Create Breadwinners.
Hot Bread Kitchen programs and services include professional skills training and career programs, job placement, food entrepreneurship and social services support. We have a built-in network of high-quality employers ready to hire graduates from our programs. Our food entrepreneurship offerings help small business owners seed, start and scale their ventures. And our team helps our members overcome obstacles to success outside the workplace—from financial planning to childcare.
Get to Know Us
Learn more about the committed team that shows up every day to create jobs, help Breadwinners achieve economic mobility and create a more equitable food system. From our staff to our Board of Directors and committees, each individual brings unique value to our recipe for success.
Our Approach
We reach New Yorkers directly while also working to break down the barriers that hold them back. We provide:
Economic Opportunity
Skill-building and resources to prepare individuals for careers and small business ownership
Community of Peers
Current program participants and alumni are members of Hot Bread Kitchen for as long as they desire support
Partnership-based Ecosystem of Support
Collaborative partnerships that extend our impact and and help people go even farther
Equitable Food Jobs
Quality jobs in New York City’s vibrant food industry that provide living wages, stable and predictable hours, advancement opportunities, safety and a sense of purpose and dignity
Our Journey and Our Impact
Since 2008, Hot Bread Kitchen has worked to create economic opportunity through careers in food. Our founder Jessamyn Waldman Rodriguez started Hot Bread Kitchen from her Brooklyn home kitchen, cooking and baking alongside immigrant women with dreams of a brighter future. As Hot Bread Kitchen has grown, this spirit—of high-touch, personalized support—continues to be central to everything we do.
Today, our community of Breadwinners is 1,500+ strong. We’ve supported members as they find careers and build agency, self-determination, and community. We’ve supported 450 food entrepreneurs. Our work has driven $100M in regional economic impact. And we have established ourselves as a powerful and influential voice demanding greater equity and opportunity in NYC’s culinary sector.
