Jon Bon Jovi opens 'pay what you can' charity restaurant in New Jersey

Jon Bon Jovi has launched a charity restaurant called The JBJ Soul Kitchen in New Jersey.

The 'It's My Life' singer opened the eatery in Red Bank this week to give local residents an affordable dining experience during tough economic times, reports The AP.

The JBJ Soul Kitchen's menus don't list any prices and customers are encouraged to leave only what they can in envelopes left on each table.

Bon Jovi and wife Dorothea worked with their charitable foundation to open the restaurant in order to help their struggling community.

The singer said: "With the economic downturn, one of the things I noticed was that disposable income was one of the first things that went. Dining out, the family going out to a restaurant, mum not having to cook, dad not having to clean up - a lot of memories were made around restaurant tables.

"When I learned that one in six people in this country goes to bed hungry, I thought this was the next phase of the Foundation's work."

Bon Jovi also stressed that JBJ Soul Kitchen is "not a soup kitchen", adding: "If you can't afford to eat, you can bus tables, you can wait tables, you can work in the kitchen as a dishwasher or sous chef.... If you come in and say, 'I'm hungry,' we'll feed you. But we're going to need you to do something. It's very important to what we're trying to achieve."

JBJ Soul Kitchen is housed in a converted auto repair near the famed Count Basie Theatre.

Bon Jovi will join Kathy Griffin, Joan Rivers and Katie Couric for an all-star Friar's Club salute to Larry King next month in New York City.

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