Charlie turned 18 and found himself beat up for being gay. When he told his parents, they kicked him out. Homeless and hungry, he wanders around. He had to find a place soon. All homeless people ended up as puppets for sorcerers and he didn’t want to end up that way.

When he finds the Dharma Café, the alley behind it has tons of food. Charlie dives in and starts eating. That is where Samura finds him. He is taking out the garbage for Chef Agatha when he spots Charlie feasting out. Charlie doesn’t know the food at the Dharma Café is magical but Samura does and tries to stop Charlie from hurting himself. When Charlie gets sick and passes out, Samura takes responsibility for Charlie and helps him. The more the two men get to know each other, the closer they become. When Charlie finds that Samura has a past that could destroy him, he will do anything to help Samura and help save the soul of the man he is starting to love.

Dharma Café by Jessica Freely has food magic in it. I found this concept really original and fun. There is humor and lots of love at the Dharma Café. Samura was once a street person too; he had nothing and Chef Agatha took him in. She taught him to find what others need. Only he cannot find what he needs out of life. He is constantly trying to please Agatha and make her proud of him. Charlie has a huge chip on his shoulder, but he is a good person. He’s still young and has a bit of teen angst still in him.

We slowly see him grow up and become a real man; that was really fun to see. Watching Samura and Charlie fall in love was beautiful; they complement each other perfectly. They just have to stop and see it too. I would love to read more in this universe and I hope Ms Freely does a sequel. I know I would love to see more love and food magic in the future.