How it works / Kitchen to food bank

How Nice Rice works

We cook rice rolls in our commissary kitchen in Lafayette, Colorado. We freeze them. Then we deliver them in bulk to Community Food Share in Louisville, the Feeding America food bank serving Boulder and Broomfield Counties. Donations and store purchases pay for all of it.

That is the whole model. Here is each step.

Help fuel the next drop ↗

A measuring cup of uncooked rice topped with seasoning and a single brown egg, on a wooden cutting board

RICE.
EGGS.
BUTTER.SIMPLE ON
PURPOSE.

Step one

1. The food

A Nice Rice roll is rice, eggs, butter, and spices, cooked and wrapped in foil. No plastic.

Each ingredient earns its spot. Rice is the universal staple: cheap, filling, and it holds heat. Eggs bring protein that is natural and vegetarian. Butter makes everything better and stores well. Spices add salt and flavor, and we lean Cajun and taco seasoning because it gives the most flavor for the cost. Foil holds the roll together and recycles.

Want to make them at home? The roll information page has the details.

Uncooked white rice grains, close up — Rice

Brown eggs in a cardboard carton, seen from above — Eggs

A pile of red-orange seasoning blend with dried herbs — Spices

Step two

2. The kitchen

Rolls are cooked in batches in our commissary kitchen in Lafayette. Cooking in one place, in volume, is what lets a small crew make a lot of food. Rolls are wrapped and frozen for delivery.

Step three

3. The delivery

Frozen rolls go out in bulk to Community Food Share in Louisville. From there, the food reaches people through the food bank's programs and local partners across Boulder and Broomfield Counties.

We still call each delivery a drop. The Drops archive records them, with photos and roll counts where we have them.

A Community Food Share van parked beside an open vehicle holding a cooler, at Drop 38

Step four / Drop 38

4. Why we changed how we deliver

Nice Rice started with hand-rolled rice rolls handed out on Denver streets, out of coolers. That is still the heart of it. But a kitchen plus a food bank partner means more rolls per drop and more people reached than one crew could manage curbside. The street drops got us here. The kitchen is how we grow.

Catch up on the drops ↗

Step five

5. How you fund it

Two ways. Donate once or monthly, or buy something from the store. Both go toward ingredients, kitchen time, packaging, and getting the food to Louisville.

Make a donation ↗

Questions

What is a rice roll?

Rice, eggs, butter, and spices, cooked and wrapped in foil. Simple on purpose. See the roll information page.

Where does the food go?

To Community Food Share in Louisville, Colorado, which distributes it through its programs and partners in Boulder and Broomfield Counties.

Do you still do street drops in Denver?

Our main delivery today is to Community Food Share. For current plans, or to suggest a drop, contact the team.

How can I help?

Donate, shop the store, or join us.

Help fuel
the next drop.