A nonprofit cafe chain that provides culinary training for refugees is relocating its Washington, D.C., facility to a larger space just outside the city to tap and increase in demand for prepared meals at workplaces.
Emma's Torch is set to open this week in Silver Spring, Maryland, in 4,500 square feet on the ground floor of the apartment building at 1200 East-West Highway.
As return-to-office mandates continue to rise post-pandemic, investments in providing fully subsidized, prepared meals for boardrooms, conferences and other group occasions are on the rise.
"Workplaces are increasing their investment in food," corporate catering technology platform ezCater said in a statement last month. "Ninety-one percent of workplaces plan to spend the same or more on food in 2026, up from 82% in 2024. In fact, one in five plan to increase their spending by more than 25% this year."
Its findings are based on its own data and surveys conducted at the end of last year with more than 2,300 participants, including 714 who placed catering orders for their workplaces, 616 restaurant operators and 1,002 employees.
Salad chain Sweetgreen, founded in D.C.'s Georgetown neighborhood, said earlier this year it would launch a new catering format focused on customizable options. Meanwhile, at least two corporate catering services in the metropolitan area — Pro Caterers DC and Washington DC Boxed Lunches — have also expanded in the last year, citing increasing demand from businesses seeking workplace dining options amid return-to-office initiatives.
After launching in 2016 and opening multiple other locations in New York, Emma's Torch assists asylees and survivors of human trafficking in building careers in the culinary industry.
"Emma's Torch wants to have deep roots here," said Kerry Brodie, the founder and executive director of Emma's Torch, in a video about its move to Silver Spring.
Poetry by the company's namesake, Emma Lazarus, has adorned the base of the Statue of Liberty to greet new arrivals to the United States. It reads: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free."
More than four times the size of the training and dining space at the former location in D.C.'s Brookland neighborhood, the new facility is designed to accommodate about 60 people. Emma's Torch also plans to add outdoor dining.
The new location is also slated to include space for private and community events, as well as the capacity to train more than 185 students per year.
The larger kitchen is expected to enable Emma's Torch to support its growing catering business, which includes everything from mezze platters and wraps for corporate lunches to more formal menus for events and weddings.