Video via KSTP
For over a decade, the owners of Our Kitchen have opened their south Minneapolis diner to guests of Simpson’s shelter on Christmas morning. Husband and wife team Danny and Oksana Ziegler generously shared their hospitality and home-cooked meals with shelter guests again in 2022.
Our Kitchen is a Minneapolis neighborhood restaurant that has offered a welcoming atmosphere and delicious fare to guests since 1941. Danny’s grandfather purchased the restaurant in 1971, and Danny has owned the family business for the last 27 years.
Danny first connected with Simpson through Brian Bozeman, a former Simpson shelter manager, who wished to host a special activity for shelter guests on Christmas Day. Danny gladly stepped in to help: “I said, ‘They can come here.’ I cooked them a nice holiday meal. They could order anything off the menu,” he says.
Each year since, Brian brings about 70 Simpson shelter guests to enjoy a free meal on December 25. “Most of the guests are really nice and very appreciative,” says Danny.
Danny teams up with another Minneapolis business, Patisserie 46, that provides pastries and treats for the annual breakfast. Our Kitchen customers also provide financial donations to help cover the cost of food for the meal.
A personable and kind-hearted pair, Danny and Oksana enjoy helping people and providing the meal to Simpson guests. “Some of the guys will come in during the summer and ask, ‘are we still going to do that meal at Christmas?’ They remember it and look forward to it. That makes me feel good,” he says.
Simpson staff and guests are grateful to Danny and Oksana for their generosity and lasting partnership. “One of our values at Simpson is the creation of a collaborative community. Danny and Oksana are representative of the powerful community that surrounds or our work,” says Simpson’s Executive Director Steve Horsfield.
Check out some great images below from this year’s breakfast!
A Simpson Shelter guest enjoys Christmas breakfast at Our Kitchen in South Minneapolis.
Oksana and Danny Ziegler, co-owners and operators of their restaurant Our Kitchen.
Our Kitchen co-owner Oksana Ziegler takes an order from a Simpson shelter guest during Christmas breakfast.
Our Kitchen co-owner Danny Ziegler cooking Christmas breakfast for shelter guests.
Our Kitchen teamwork!
Our Kitchen, a Minneapolis neighborhood restaurant, has offered a welcoming atmosphere and delicious fare to guests since 1941 and a Christmas brunch to Simpson shelter guests for a decade.