NEWARK — Rutgers University and a celebrated rock star joined forces Wednesday, opening a restaurant on the Newark campus targeting thousands of college students who face food insecurtiy.

At JBJ Soul Kitchen, a project by Grammy Award-winning rock-and-roller Jon Bon Jovi, college students can get a fresh, three-course meal for free. At Rutgers-Newark, more than 50 percent of the 13,000 undergraduate and graduate students have exceptional financial need.

Two other JBJ Soul Kitchen restaurants are in Red Bank and Toms River. Combined, they served 100,000 meals last year, said Bon Jovi, 57, a New Jersey native.

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But the new location is the first on a college campus. It's set to open Thursday at the Paul Robeson Campus Center.

“My wife, Dorothea — she created this idea,” Bon Jovi said. “It’s been a passion project for us for a decade now.”

At the Soul Kitchen, students, faculty, staff and community members can pay $12 or swipe a meal plan. They can also donate more to cover the cost of a meal for someone in need. Students can volunteer their time at the restaurant or other campus dining locations to earn meals. Servers at the Soul Kitchen won’t know whether patrons paid for their meals.

The restaurant will offer vegan, gluten-free, halal and kosher options. On Wednesday, visitors previewing the restaurant were offered smoked salmon, chicken skewers, vegetable dumplings, pulled beef and chocolate-covered strawberries.

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Bon Jovi and his wife, Dorothea Hurley, "spent so much time with us helping us develop this concept,” said Michael Frungillo, president of Gourmet Dining, the food service company serving Rutgers-Newark. “The partnership here has been really unique and special.”

The restaurant is Rutgers' latest effort to address student hunger. The campus already has a food pantry, which is adjacent to the Soul Kitchen, said Rutgers-Newark Chancellor Nancy Cantor.

Last semester alone, the food pantry provided 30 tons of food, Cantor said.

“What makes all the difference is that our students know that this is not a stigma,” she added. “This is an empowerment. This is a recognition of the reality of what it means to be a first-generation student, what it means to be a low-income student.”

Gov. Phil Murphy was also on hand Wednesday, praising Bon Jovi and Hurley for their leadership and thanking them for their friendship.

The Soul Kitchen, he said, exemplifies values of compassion and generosity central to the university and the state.

“Many of these talented, brilliant, hardworking students are struggling to make ends meet,” Murphy said. “As we all know, it can be difficult to ask for help, even from family."

Brian Ray, a 22-year-old Rutgers-Newark senior from Lodi, organized Rutgers Against Hunger, a student initiative to address food insecurity. He called the Soul Kitchen "unique" and a way to improve social responsibility on campus while addressing hunger.

Peer-to-peer discussions about food insecurity, though tough, are a first step to helping food-insecure students get resources, Ray said. Taking away stigma means more students using assets like the food pantry and new restaurant.

"No matter how gruesome the conversation can be, you have to be that voice," he said. "You have to step aside from concerns of embarrassment. You can better them at the end of the day."

The restaurant will also fill social voids the food pantry can't meet, Hurley said.

Students who feel pressure to go out with friends but can’t afford an expensive restaurant dinner can use the Soul Kitchen as a gathering place, she said.

The restaurant comes on the heels of another major Rutgers announcement. University officials on Tuesday introduced a new president, Jonathan Holloway, who will take the institution's helm after President Robert Barchi retires in June.

No plans currently exist to expand the restaurant to Rutgers’ New Brunswick and Camden campuses, but Bon Jovi said the model “can be replicated across all of New Jersey and across America.”

“The opportunity will be there,” he said. “We’ll see how this one goes.”

Alexis Shanes is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: shanesa@northjersey.com Twitter: @alexisjshanes