Café Momentum, a nonprofit restaurant that employs justice-involved youth, is set to open in Atlanta in 2024. Courtesy of Café Momentum
By Olivia Wakim
A new restaurant coming to Atlanta next year will serve casual fine dining food and a new approach to juvenile justice.
Café Momentum will be staffed entirely by metro Atlanta teenagers ages15 to19 who have spent time in the juvenile justice system.
Texas-based restaurateur Chad Houser opened Café Momentum’s flagship location in Dallas, Texas, in 2015. The nonprofit restaurant was established to provide youthleaving the juvenile detention system with support and an opportunity to succeed while holistically addressing barriers that “had previously pushed them into a path to detention,” Houser said.
“It proves to every guest that walks into the restaurant, but also the staff, that they can and will rise to whatever level of expectation is set for them,” Houser said. “As long as we provide them with the tools and resources and opportunities to do so.”
For at least a year, the interns rotate through every front- and back-of-house role in the restaurant while learning the requisite skills for each position. They simultaneously participate in “tiers of success” where they accomplish different actions like receiving a government-issued ID, setting up a bank account and enrolling in school. As they complete the various tiers, they earn hourly raises and move toward graduation.
While the program is set up to be completed in a year, interns have the option to start over as many times as they need, Houser said.
“It’s about our young person understanding what it feels like to have a team that’s saying, ‘We’re going to do our best to put you in position to be your best.’ And that’s why we’re more than just a restaurant,” he said. “That’s why we focus on that ecosystem of support.”