These Atlanta eateries are saying “Paga Lo Que Puedas”: Pay What You Can

On Monday morning, Vinny Pellegri started the first step in a three-day process of making his signature focaccia. He took out his sourdough starter and mixed it into a levain, a preferment he’d eventually use to make the dough. Later that day, separately, he’d be slicing and sugaring muscadine grapes, which would be eventually blended and turned into a sorbet. The final meal—a focaccia sandwich with tomatoes, corn butter, green goddess dressing, and pickled banana peppers, plus muscadine sorbet for dessert—will be offered on Wednesday at the rooftop of the Hotel Clermont. The cost? Whatever you can pay. 

Vinny is the founder of Vinny’s Mutual Aid Bakery which, along with the Buford Highway Filipino restaurant Kamayan ATL, is participating in the global initiative Paga Lo Que Puedas, or Pay What You Can. The concept originated over 1,700 miles away in Mexico City, where a husband-and-wife couple, the owners of Masala y Maiz, launched a local version in 2025. Diners enjoyed food at any of 20 local eateries in exchange for whatever they could afford. On August 26, the initiative is going global, with more than 100 places to eat in 13 countries doing the same. 

It’s part of a growing movement “against the capitalistic approach that we’re all working under as operators in food and beverage,” Vinny said. Described by organizers as a day dedicated to “a model that prioritizes access, generosity, and shared responsibility, Paga Lo Que Pueda also comes after a summer of food recalls, from Publix frozen blueberries to Taylor Farms bagged greens to Outshine popsicles. “Folks are going to farmers markets more,” said Vinny.

A “people-first” approach is nothing new for Mia Orino, chef and co-owner of Kamayan ATL. Every month, the restaurant has an item that they offer on a sliding scale. “People can come and pay what they can, or pay it forward. For a lot of people, they pay it forward,” she said. “It could just be an $8 lumpia [a popular Filipino spring roll]. It could just be a soup. But for some person who will be receiving that soup or that lumpia, that could be their only meal for the day.” This month, the sliding-scale item is the icy dessert halo halo, she said, because “right now, this month is just so hot.” Plus, it’s August: “my birthday month.” 

On Tuesday, Mia was busy preparing meals for the restaurant’s weekly food distribution. This week, they were providing over 200 burgers, along with a veggie dish and dessert, for kids at the Agape after-school program, one of their rotating community partners. “A lot of people don’t realize you’re just a paycheck away from being unhoused or from facing food insecurity,” she said, adding that many families are relieved that school is back in session: “During summer, so many children here in Georgia, here in Atlanta, they only have one meal or no meal at all.”

Balancing the restaurant’s community work with the business side isn’t easy, Mia told 285 South, but the approach is part of who they are, and who they’ve been, since Kamayan started as a pop-up around eight years ago. “If you start from day one that you’re community focused, and community matters to you, then community will back you up,” she said. Even though she wishes there were more, she said she understands why few Atlanta restaurants are participating in Paga Lo Que Pueda. For many in the food business, “it’s not a good time,” she said. “The margins are very slim.” 

Vinny also launched his bakery as a pop-up, inspired originally by his love for cannoli and motivation to give to causes supporting people in Gaza. This year, the email marketing company where Vinny worked underwent a major round of layoffs—including Vinny’s job. But Vinny said it was for the best. He’s now working full-time on growing his bakery business, which regularly donates a portion of its proceeds to nonprofits supporting immigrant justice, people in Gaza, and trans housing. Next week, he’s moving his operations from his home kitchen to a commercial space in College Park operated by the nonprofit PushPush Arts.

Kamayan also recently relocated—they’re just next door to their old location in Asian Square in Doraville, and now have a capacity to seat around 96 people, said Mia. With a staff of 35 and the larger space, she isn’t worried about crowds on Wednesday. But she was thinking about Vinny, since right now his bakery is mostly a one-person operation. “If he needs help, I’m gonna reach out to him,” she said, planning to call right after she got off the phone with 285 South.