Rock Bottom Brewery Hosting Free Christmas Meal

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Christmas and the holiday season can often bring out the goodness of people's hearts.

Some local restaurants opened up on Christmas Day, just to serve the less fortunate. Rock Bottom Brewery in downtown Minneapolis is one of the spots serving up a big Christmas meal for those in need.

It's the 10th year that Rock Bottom Brewery and Old Chicago have teamed up to host meals for the less fortunate. Officials said they plan on serving about 1,200 meals to those in need on Christmas Day. The meal includes turkey, stuffing and all the fixings.

When families started arriving for the meal, they were welcomed with a free photo shoot and will get to take home a family picture after the meal. The families who got the free meal were chosen by Twin Cities charities. They focus on low-income families who have had trouble making ends meet financially and some of the homeless.

Officials said it takes nearly 200 volunteers to make the event happen, and to them, it's about hosting a memorable Christmas dinner for the families in need. Officials said about half of the food that's served is donated.

"It's just to give back to the community, to see the smiles on the faces of the kids. It's to provide an experience to a family that's going through some rough times," said Luke Dunham, who is coordinating the volunteers for the event. "That they can take a memory home with them of a day they were treated really well."

And it's more than a meal. The kids have arts and crafts activities to do, they can meet Santa Claus and before they leave, they get a bag full of gifts.