Angela Ortmann (a.k.a. STLwinegirl) organizes month-long dining event in support of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October

Five years ago, Angela Ortmann (a.k.a. STLwinegirl and a freelance dining writer for SLM) organized a series of fundraisers to support various aspects of St. Louis’ dining scene.

Her first “Love to Eat, Eat to Love” event brought awareness to St. Louis’ immigrant-owned and fusion restaurants. The second event celebrated more than 75 of the city’s female culinary pros. The third event, organized in March 2020, was virtual and raised money for servers, bartenders, chefs, and other restaurant industry workers affected by the pandemic.

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Today, Ortmann reached out to restaurants via Facebook and asked them to support National Domestic Violence Awareness Month by participating in an event that’s still in the planning stages. Referring to the alleged domestic assault incident involving snō co-owner Tony Nguyen, Ortmann wrote, “In light of this week’s events, that I am sure we are all reeling from, I have decided to reignite the STLwinegirl ‘Love To Eat Eat To Love’ movement.”

Cognizant of the industry’s staffing shortages and high costs, instead of organizing a one-day event, Ortmann is asking metro area restaurants, bars, shops, and distributors to contribute a certain percentage of sales on a certain day or from a certain dish, which could be donated toward domestic violence organizations.

“Everyone works so hard to keep this city’s food scene a special place built on incredible relationships, amazing collaborations, and continual support of one another,” says Ortmann, who was inducted into the St. Louis chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier Int’l (LDEI) earlier this month. “Together, we can make an impact on many lives, while making a collective statement not only against perpetrators, but more importantly in support of victims.”

In only three hours, dozens of establishments opted in, Ortmann says. (Interested participants can inquire at [email protected].) The list at press time includes: