(CNN) Volunteers at a Chicago food bank got a surprise treat for the holidays.

Former President Barack Obama paid an unannounced visit Tuesday to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, where he helped bag potatoes for Thanksgiving meals.

Wearing a Chicago White Sox hat, Obama arrived with bags of donated food and donned latex gloves to work side by side with volunteers at the nonprofit, which helps provide meals to more than 700 food pantries and shelters across Cook County, Illinois.

The former President and longtime Chicago resident came with staffers from the Obama Foundation, which seeks to improve communities across the US through leadership training and other educational efforts.

"Hey, how's it going?" he asked volunteers as he walked in. "This is a spiffy-looking spot right here."