Mauricio and Lilian Arizola are the owners of Senor Aji Peruvian Kitchen in Fresno. They received a $5,000 Restaurants Care grant in the past. CRF photo

Applications open June 15 for another round of $5,000 grants for Central Valley restaurants — and commercial caterers for the first time.

This is the fourth consecutive launch of the Restaurants Care Resilience Fund from the nonprofit California Restaurant Foundation. The program is supported by SoCalGas, the PG&E Corporation Foundation and San Diego Gas and Electric.

Past local winners of the $5,000 grants include La Elegante Taqueria, Senor Aji, Quesadilla Gorilla, China Express, Starving Artists Bistro and more.

The California Restaurant Foundation plans to award grants to 278 independent business owners in Los Angeles, Orange County, Inland Empire and Central California.

“Our decision to open applications to commercial caterers came after hearing countless stories from catering businesses asking for support, as they too are an essential part of any local food scene,” said Alycia Harshfield, executive director of the California Restaurant Foundation. “The foundation, along with our generous partners, proudly continue our Resilience Fund efforts year after year to ensure California’s independent restauranteurs and food business owners remain an integral part of our state’s vibrant dining community and economy for decades to come.”

Resilience Fund recipients can use the financial assistance to support vital business needs, including kitchen equipment upgrades, technology improvements, unforeseen hardships and employee training programs and retention bonuses.

Resilience Fund applications will be open from June 15 to June 30, 2024, and can be found at www.restaurantscare.org/resilience. Grants will be available to all California-based restaurant owners and commercial caterers within the utility companies’ service areas, provided they operate fewer than five units and generate less than $3 million in annual revenue. Priority consideration will be given to restaurants that have not received a grant previously.

Founded in 2021 in response to the challenges restaurant owners encountered due to COVID-19 and its aftermath, the Resilience Fund has distributed nearly $6 million in grants since its inception. To date, more than 1,325 grants have been awarded to independent restaurants throughout California, with 66 percent given to women-owned businesses and 77 percent to businesses owned by people of color.