Photo: Shaun Christie-David
Some people open restaurants to serve meals. Shaun Christie-David opens them to serve humanity. Good Food Innovator of the Year, Not for Profit Emerging Leader, Time Out’s Hospitality Future Shaper, an AMP Tomorrow Maker – and in 2021, Plate it Forward was the recipient of the Community Human Rights Champion by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Through Plate It Forward, Shaun has created a movement—a hospitality group with heart—that employs approximately 90% marginalised immigrant women, celebrates the cultural origins of food, and turns every plate into an act of inclusion. From Colombo Social to Kabul Social to Kyiv Social, each venue tells a story of resilience, culture, and contribution.
Photo: Restaurant Chef
More than 650,000 meals have been donated across Australia, Sri Lanka and Ukraine. But Shaun’s real innovation is something you won’t find on a spreadsheet—it’s his insistence that business can be both wildly generous and commercially ambitious.
At Compadres, I’m lucky to walk beside Shaun as his strategic advisor, helping guide Plate It Forward’s revenue growth through new restaurants, catering initiatives, and adjacent product opportunities. Our work is grounded in the Compadres Business Growth Framework, and our shared belief that purpose can be a growth strategy, not a trade-off.
Shaun’s revolution is being plated daily. And trust me—it’s worth a taste .
What if your favourite restaurant wasn’t just feeding you, but feeding a movement?
That’s the idea behind Plate It Forward, the radically generous hospitality group founded by Shaun Christie-David. What started as a single Sri Lankan restaurant with a mission has now become a growing network of food venues that do far more than serve customers—they serve society.
Shaun’s restaurants—Colombo Social, Kabul Social, and Kyiv Social—each celebrate their respective place of origin through cuisine, design, and staff. But more importantly, they offer employment, training, and belonging to some of the most marginalised individuals in our community—many of whom are women from refugee or immigrant backgrounds.
Since its inception, Plate It Forward has employed over 200 people from these communities and donated over 650,000 meals to people in need—across Australia and internationally in Sri Lanka and Ukraine. This is food as cultural diplomacy, as economic empowerment, as soul work.
At Compadres, we’ve partnered with Shaun and his team to scale this purpose-led business to new heights. Our goal: help grow revenue through a mix of strategic restaurant expansion, product development, and adjacent services (like catering and meal delivery).
We’re designing a bespoke Growth Advisory Board, composed of values-aligned thinkers, doers and connectors who will help guide Plate It Forward through its next chapter. The process includes:
• Mapping Shaun’s big vision against market realities
• Identifying the 2–3 most high-impact moves for this year
• Enhancing operational efficiency while staying rooted in purpose
• Exploring new partnerships and product ideas that align with their mission
The Plate It Forward story is proof that you don’t need to choose between doing good and doing well. You can do both—if you’ve got the right team, a clear strategy, and a compadre (or two) walking beside you.
Photo: Shaun Christie-David & Clive Burcham
Because in this business, purpose isn’t the garnish. It’s the main course.
Here’s how you can get involved with Plate it Forward
