Reading takeaway to feed homeless free meal every week

Chicken Base charity homeless Reading

Iftikhar Ahmed and his team at Chicken Base in Reading

A Halal takeaway joint will be inviting those sleeping rough on the streets of Reading to join them for a free meal tomorrow.

Chicken Base will be opening its doors to the homeless every Monday evening from between 7pm till 9pm to come in and enjoy a delicious chicken meal.

More remarkably, this local eatery on Wokingham Road has been feeding the less fortunate in various ways for a number of years now.

“At the end of the night, we pack extra food in boxes and distribute it to those unlucky people who are sleeping on the streets,” says owner Iftikhar Ahmed.

And what’s his motivation? Iftikhar says his drive for such initiatives can be summed up in one phrase – ‘food for everyone’.

The reason we took this initiative and the reason for providing such people with healthy food was [because] being Muslim we take it as our duty. – Owner, Iftikhar Ahmed

Chicken Base charity homeless Reading“No doubt this was the motivation behind this step,” he told FtLion, adding: “There are many homeless people who do not have access to proper food. The reason we took this initiative and the reason for providing such people with healthy food was [because] being Muslim we take it as our duty.”

While this humble chicken shop has been operating for almost 12 years now, Iftikhar reveals that his team carry out their selfless work “without working out how much it’s gonna cost us” while putting their trust in Allah.

“We just have a small business. But Allah is with us, insha’Allah (God-willing), in providing people with free food every Monday from 7pm to 9pm,” he said.

And the response from those who have come in to enjoy a hot meal, he says, is quite overwhelming.

“The way those people respond is indescribable. They get emotional, thank us and love us, and most of the time they hug us. I can’t express their feelings,” Iftikhar recalls.


Royal Nawaab Express
144 Wokingham Road, Reading RG6 1JL.

T: +44 (0)118 966 8855 | W: www.chickenbase.co.uk | E: [email protected]

Opening Hours: Mon-Sun 10:00-05:00

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