Ann Arbor restaurants pledge portion of proceeds to Haiti

“After seeing everything on the news about the earthquake, I really wanted to do something to help,” organizer Kay Leopold said.

Diners eat at Pacific Rim, which is one of the restaurants participating in an effort to raise funds for Haiti.

File photo

Leopold, who is not affiliated with any organization or restaurant, contacted the downtown restaurants after hearing about similar programs in New York City and Raleigh, N.C.

“I thought it would be nice to organize something like that here,” she said.

Dine Out for Haiti asks restaurants nationwide to donate up to 10 percent of their sales to one of three organizations providing aid to Haiti.

Leopold said she chose Partners in Health because she took a class with the organization’s founders and was impressed.

“I just think Partners in Health is a really amazing organization,” she said.

So far, Arbor Brewing Company has pledged 10 percent of its bar sales, Vinology 10 percent of its restaurant sales and Pacific Rim 5 percent of its total sales. The West End Grill was one of the newest to join the list and is still figuring out details.

“We try to get involved with community fundraising events, and this extends to the greater world community,” West End Grill owner Roland Pohlman said. “We’re just trying to do our small part.”

Pacific Rim Chef and Owner Duc Tang said he wanted to reach out to the local community and the people of Haiti.

“It’s about being responsible businesses as well as responsible citizens,” he said. “I think it goes hand-and-hand.”

Leopold said she contacted a number of other restaurants downtown and is trying to gather more participants for the event.

Those interested in joining Ann Arbor Dine Out for Haiti should contact her at kay.leopold@post.harvard.edu.

For more information on Ann Arbor restaurants, visit AnnArbor.com's restaurant guide.