Local restaurant will provide opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities

After working in the restaurant business for most of his life, all while raising his 24-year-old son who has autism, Bill Schack, 56, decided he would combine his passion for family and food with his newest venture, Inclusion Cafe.

The concept behind Inclusion Cafe is to open a restaurant with a plan to employ up to 30 individuals with intellectual disabilities, providing them with the tools they need to navigate working within their communities.

“We're going to tell restaurants we're not going to be competition for them, we're going to be the place where we train the next employee,” Schack said. “That's going to be our goal.”

The restaurant is the first of its kind to hit Florida, according to the Florida State University alum. He was inspired by “No Limits Cafe” based in New Jersey, where the entire restaurant is operated by employees with intellectual disabilities.

“It's something I think our community needs and something I think our community will support,” Schack said in an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat.

Schack, a veteran in the restaurant scene is currently working Social Catering and Events and spent two decades at Applebee’s, two years at Chili's, and six years as food director at the Kearney Center. He also ran for the Tallahassee City Commission in 2020 but lost to Curtis Richardson.

While turning a new page, Schack felt that after 10 years of brainstorming, it was time to establish his own restaurant, which he felt was the natural thing to do.

“We’re going to provide the opportunity that most people with intellectual disabilities usually don't get,” Schack said.

Schack said that seeing his son, Dylan, work in restaurants has inspired him to provide the same opportunities for others. A lot of the stipulations that come with hiring those with intellectual abilities as Schack explained is that employers are “unsure of what they can do,” or how much effort they must put forward to train them.

Schack wants to erase that uncertainty by guaranteeing results.

“We're gonna give them the skills that they need to get hired and be impactful in the restaurant on day one,” Schack said.

What’s being planned

The proposed classroom/restaurant is slated to open at the beginning of next year on 1711 S. Monroe St., and is already taking steps to make its vision official with the help of one of the 10 Inclusion Cafe board members, Travis Sparkman, president of TSpark Enterprises — Roofing and Construction Services.

After hearing Schack's ideas for the venture, Sparkman shared with the founder that he was in luck because he had two buildings he was trying to figure out what to do with.

This was a turning point for the restaurant's development where a dream became a reality, and it wouldn't stop there – an evening culinary classroom, Inclusion Cafe Academy, is on the team’s agenda as well.

Their goal is to use one of the buildings for the actual restaurant to serve "typical lunch fair" ranging from sandwiches to salads and burgers, while the other building functions as a training facility.

"So our goal... is to be able to use those not just to train them to work in a restaurant, but also train them to be able ... to be kind of independent," Sparkman said.

The evening academy will seek out local chefs and restauranteurs to volunteer their time and expertise to teach those who do not exclusively work at the cafe so that anyone with a passion for this work is provided the opportunity to learn restaurant skills to prepare them for employment.

To raise money for development, equipment and furniture, the Inclusion Cafe is hosting a live art and memorabilia auction at 6 p.m. Friday, September 29, at the Capital City Country Club.

General admission tickets are sold out, but standing-room tickets are still available for purchase for $25 on the Inclusion Cafe site. 

The inspiration for the artwork is to honor the craft of those with intellectual disabilities, Shack said. The art featured in the auction will be made by artists from all over the country, with some local artist offerings, including from artists with Pyramid Studios.

Sports and music memorabilia also will be available for purchase along with other ticket items.

The goal is to raise $10,000 for the restaurant. Bids will start at $75 for auction items, there will also be a raffle for a donated Florida State Seminoles spear.

Democrat writer Kyla Sanford can be reached at ksanford@gannett.com.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article listed the incorrect age for Bill Schack's son and native city.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Inclusion Cafe in Tallahassee to empower people with disabilities