The Greener Good - Churchill Street

Published on November 09, 2026

Churchill Street is a restaurant dedicated to giving new life to what gets thrown away. From leftovers to packaging, the restaurant is vigilant in reducing waste and diverting it from landfills. Their work includes:

Organics recycling: composting all food scraps
Using all parts of food products, like bones and rinds for stock
Partnering with Ridwell to recycle plastic film, layered plastics, and batteries
Collecting used cooking oil to be turned to renewable energy through
Sanimax Stocking BPI-certified compostable products for disposable items Sourcing food products locally

A woven basket holds eco-friendly disposable cutlery packs in brown paper bags and a cup filled with white paper-wrapped straws. A large potted plant is in the background.

This “all-in, hands-on effort” from both front-of-house and back-of-house staff at Churchill Street means different materials go to a variety of different places to be turned into something new. Most of what guests use can be recycled or composted; in fact, the restaurant has compost and recycling picked up twice as often as trash. Churchill Street seeks to implement creative waste management strategies behind the scenes, further reducing what the restaurant sends to the trash.

For example, supplies may arrive in multi-layer or film plastic packaging that can’t go in the recycling or compost dumpsters. To ensure these items aren’t wasted, Owner Carly Gatzlaff reached out to Ridwell to see if the restaurant could participate. Ridwell is primarily a residential recycling pick-up service for items not accepted in curbside recycling. Ridwell agreed to partner with Churchill Street, making them the first restaurant to do so. The restaurant also hosts drives to collect hard-to-recycle items from staff members.

A coffee counter with a metal coffee dispenser, glass cups, and ceramic cups stacked neatly. There is a wooden tray with assorted straws and stirrers.

Waste reduction is a central practice of the restaurant, and has been since opening in 2021. According to Assistant General Manager Harmony Lennon, it goes hand-in-hand with their values. One of their fundamental values is to take action by generating less waste and responsibly managing what remains, consequently embodying additional values like “be kind” and “care tons” for the community and the planet. It has never been a question of whether to reduce waste at Churchill Street. “It’s what we do, who we are,” Lennon said.