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Pancakes on the menu at Capuchin service in Dublin

Capuchin Day Centre expected to serve between 600 and 700 people
Capuchin Day Centre expected to serve between 600 and 700 people

As is the case most days, there was a queue outside the Capuchin Day Centre ahead of the homeless charity opening its doors at 7.30am.

The centre, which is located in Dublin's north inner city, was expecting up to 700 people to arrive for a meal between breakfast and lunch and, for the day that's in it, pancakes were on the menu.

Patricia Keane, who works as a chef at the centre, has been making pancake batter with her team since yesterday.

"We're out the door every day," Ms Keane told RTÉ's Morning Ireland. "We have more people coming in now."

Ms Keane has been involved with the Capuchin Day Centre for the last 27 years as both a volunteer and an employee.

"Between breakfast and lunch, the Capuchin Day Centre serves a meal to between 600 and 700 people every day."

Ms Keane expected to make between 1,200 and 1,300 pancakes so that everyone could get two pancakes each.

"When we do the pancakes and we're serving them out half of them say 'Oh is it Pancake Tuesday?' They don't even realise until they see [the pancakes]."

Many of the people eating pancakes did not realise that it was Pancake Tuesday but were happy to have one after their normal porridge or fry-up for breakfast.

People queuing out the Capuchin Day Centre this morning

One person, who has been visiting the centre for years, said that the food at the centre is always "tasty".

Another said he got more out of it than the "top quality food" - pancakes or not.

"They provide chiropodists here. Dentists here, opticians here. It's like a Men's Shed too. And the staff are great. And there's a real sense of community. And it's for your mental health as well," he said.

For the director of the centre, Fr Kevin Kiernan, it was his first Pancake Tuesday at the Capuchin Day Centre.

"Pope Francis said 'always pray for the poor and then feed them'. That's how prayer works," he said.

"So, it's an opportunity for us to engage more with those in the day centre through the simple pancake."

Fr Kevin added he was aware that people were coming into the Capuchin Day Centre with different religions and different backgrounds, and sometimes presenting someone with a pancake is just another method of getting someone to open up.

"A pancake might start a conversation and build up that trust," he said.

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Ash Wednesday, is an even better conversation starter for people from different cultures, according to Fr Kevin.

"It's amazing! Those of us who are Catholic, we'll have our ashes on tomorrow and people say, 'What's that on your forehead, Father?'

"It's just an opportunity for me to share something of my faith, what we do as Christians and then we have a conversation.

"They'll tell us about the different faiths that they belong to and what they do, so it's all about starting that conversation and building up the trust and engaging with each other."

Wednesdays are usually the busiest day of the week at the Capuchin Day Centre as food parcels are given out as well as takeaway hot meals.

Last week, 7 February, 1,710 parcels were distributed.

As Fr Kevin will not be eating meat tomorrow in observance with Catholic tradition, he stressed that the Capuchin Day Centre does not impose religious observance on others.

Although he will be out offering ashes to anyone that wants them, adding that anyone that asks for a normal fry-up complete with sausages is more than welcome.