The Jersey Shore Restaurateur Making a Big Community Impact
People know Cookie Till from her iconic restaurant, Steve and Cookie’s. But the SI member is equally devoted to her innovative and influential nonprofit, Reed’s Farm.
Cookie and Friend: “[People] deserve good, nutrient-dense, fresh food. To me it is a human right.”
Serving people delicious, healthy, high-quality food isn’t just how Cookie Till makes her living. It’s also how she makes an impact in the community.
Till is the co-founder (with her late husband, Steve) of beloved Jersey Shore restaurant Steve and Cookie’s, as well as owner of two other successful eateries: Ventnor 7311, a bakery; and Florida Cuts, a sandwich shop. The trio of businesses have earned a large and loyal following in Margate, Atlantic City and nearby Shore towns.
But along the way Till, a Satell Institute member, decided she wanted to make an even bigger impact in the community. That’s why, in 2020, she co-founded A Meaningful Purpose, a nonprofit that addresses food insecurity, soil regeneration and community inclusiveness. Its mission is carried out largely at historic Reed’s Farm, an organic South Jersey farm that, in addition to growing food, provides educational and vocational programming to schools and individuals with cognitive disabilities.
Till’s many activities capture the spirit of the Satell Institute perfectly: letting deep passion drive both for-profit success and nonprofit impact.
In this conversation, Till talks about her love of hospitality; why decent food is a human right; and how the mission of the Satell Institute continues to inspire her.
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Steve and Cookie’s…
…just turned 29, so we’re going into our 30th year. My husband actually died four years into Steve and Cookie's, so then I was running it by myself for years but with great support.
Eleven years ago we opened the bakery 7311, and in 2021 we purchased Florida Cold Cuts — since shortened to Florida Cuts. In between I actually started my first nonprofit, working to build school gardens in Atlantic City.
I’ve always been interested…
…in food and cooking and baking. My earliest memories are of being in the kitchen. Then I worked as a teenager on the Boardwalk and also started my own little baking business.
It's just always been my muse and curiosity — the culture of food, how comforting it is to have a good meal. It’s so much more than eating.
At Steve and Cookie’s, the key to our success is…
…well, we’re pretty simple —we're not splitting the atom here. One is, don't believe your own press. Always want to be better and take care of the people that you work with and don’t compromise quality.
We don’t really go with all the trends. I believe in freshness and good-quality ingredients and consistency. We do specials, but I can’t take stuff off the menu because any number of things are people's favorites. They, like, lose their mind.
When you’re serving customers, you never know…
…where people are coming from, what their day was like, what they’re dealing with. But if they can have a couple of hours to just forget about life and enjoy company and food and not want for anything, that to me is the ultimate service. You don’t even realize it until you leave and you’re like, wow, I didn't have to ask for anything. They were just there and made it nice.
Once we were somewhat established…
…that’s when I could look out and say, okay, there’s a lot of people within very close proximity that will never be able to eat here. And they deserve good, nutrient-dense, fresh food as well. To me it is a human right.
When we started A Meaningful Purpose and acquired the farm…
…it was farmland, but there really was no farm. There was absolutely nothing except for 72 acres of land and a barn.
To me, it starts with the land. There was no organic matter left in the soil. So that needed attention, which took time and a lot of education and effort.
The farm helps address ...
…two main problems that I see. One is to serve kids with special needs. And then there’s food equity or food dignity piece of it.
We have a market and a kitchen, so people can come with their families. We give tours and workshops. But we also do work around workforce development and job exploration. We have people that work in our market, and we do a lot of gardening and botanical work.
And then we also have animals here. Our donkey, Violet, is a certified “pet partner.” And we have a therapy bunny, and we have a sheep that thinks he’s a dog and is super-friendly. So kids love it here.
Our biggest push right now…
…is our work in Atlantic City with other nonprofits to bring vegetables to the city. We’re creating what’s called Farmers Row, a food hub in the city. We’re starting to plan for a community kitchen and innovation center. The idea is to bring food into the city and engage around farmer’s markets, corner stores and small restaurants. We’d also like to work with the hospital and the schools and the casinos — you know, make it like a business, an economic driver around food.
I first became aware of the Satell Institute…
…through SI member Marc Brownstein. He’s a very frequent guest at Steve and Cookie’s and has become a friend. He told me about it, and then he and I went and had lunch with Ed Satell. You can’t not love that guy. He’s just so interested and interesting.
I’m a big fan…
…of the Satell Institute’s mission. Everybody should have a social conscience. It shouldn’t just be nonprofits. It just makes business sense to me.
When I walk around the restaurant…
…and people tell me it’s their first time at Steve and Cookie’s, I love that. Part of me is like, well, where have you been? But the other part is like, this is so cool. So it’s great because we still have room to grow.
