GOURMET DUMPSTER DIVERS

     I've decided to stay away from the sexual deviance today and dive into garbage. Those of you who live or lived in a city have probably seen people dive into dumpsters to grab salvageable food to bring home for dinner. I mean, I have never done that personally, but I have seen it. Some of you might throw your nose up in the air and say, "That is utterly disgusting!" Some might be curious as to what these people will find. 

     Well, a food-focused innovator and his chef have teamed up and decided to turn trash-bound ingredients into elegant meals and serve them to guests in a cleaned-up old used dumpster. So, instead of diving into the dumpster like a heathen, you can now dine in it with your food cooked by a gourmet chef. Basically, she cooks your garbage. Salvage Supperclub creator Josh Treuhaft told New York Daily News, "If it's edible and you can eat it, we should be using it to feed people" after he studied how to reduce massive food waste. The 30-year-old recent School of Visual Arts graduate partnered with Natural Gourmet institute chefs back in March to hold the first supperclub dining experience in a Chelsea studio. Today, they've run five dinners with the last two held in an industrial dumpster in Williamsburg. I have to admit; I'm not sure I can do it. I'm one of those people that I mentioned earlier who will turn their nose in disgust.

     The 16-seated guest feast showcases chronically unloved ingredients in gourmet dishes. Chef Celia Lam has mashed disgusting-looking black peel bananas with coconut mile for tasty custards, pureed the greens from rubbery carrots for pesto and juiced bruised apples for sorbets. Purple kale stems get pickled for garnishes. Cracked heirloom tomatoes are boiled, skinned and blended into a summer gazpacho. Lam, who hopes to encourage people to use more of their food, says, "It's not something that's very complicated. Pickling is easy to do. Pesto is easy to do. 

     Apparently, the key is to realize there's a difference between normal breakdown and the dangerous bacteria from mishandling that can make you sick. The dumpster dining room was a concept designed to drive home the idea and theme that Lam and Treuhaft came up with. Treuhaft uses materials donated by Build It Green! NYC, a Gowanus-based building supply store that sells salvaged materials, also known as garbage! Even the water glasses come from old wine bottles. The pair have raised a few eyebrows and received a few complaints from passersby. One woman thought it was an insult to homeless people who scavenge for food. Um, not quite, but nice try. And do you really think a homeless person would be insulted by this? I highly doubt it. 

     The duo hope to host another event in August, but they're still working out the details. They hope their idea spreads. Treuhaft says, "Anyone can do this. You could get together with friends on a Sunday and bring things home from your refrigerator and have a great meal." I have a better idea based on the woman's comment. Why don't they keep this concept to feed the homeless? Instead of the homeless diving into dumpsters. Invited them into a dumpster to have a gourmet meal. That would be a hell of a nice gesture and you wouldn't be insulting the homeless. Oh, but then again, where would the money be in that? Well, enjoy your dumpster dining! You won't see me there....unless, I really become homeless.