The Pacific Palisades home where chef Daniel Shemtob and his wife dreamed of raising a family is now nothing more than a cratered pit of twisted metal and rubble. Gone are the gourmet kitchen, the nursery with the baby giraffe and elephant wallpaper, and the half-century-old olive trees in the yard.
But even as the Los Angeles-area wildfires continue to burn, Shemtob has been soothing his soul by dishing out free, foil-wrapped breakfast burritos and tacos from his award-winning food truck to first responders and weary evacuees.
It would be easy for the two-time Food Network competition winner to dwell on the loss of the home, which he and his wife, Elyse, moved into about eight months ago, leasing with an option to buy. Yet he smiles, thinking about the people he has met through the food giveaways.
One man was so happy with his sweet and spicy steak taco that he declared it was the first time he smiled since his home burned. Another person loved the simple cheese quesadilla the chef made for him so much, he came back for more and brought six family members.
As he watched his home burn from home security cameras he sank into a deep depression.
Then he remembered he had something to give. The Saturday after evacuating, Shemtob took his food truck to a donation center in Pasadena. Since then, thousands of people have gotten meals from his trucks.