EDMONTON -- In an effort to help the local economy and fellow Edmontonians who are finding it difficult to physically distance, a local group has started a weekly, virtual lunch.

Anyone and everyone is invited.

Eat With Me YEG originally was a way for a group of friends to follow through on lunch plans while supporting a sector of local business that was among the earliest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We wanted to support Chinatown restaurants because they were some of the businesses that got hit with the discrimination around the misunderstanding of the virus," explained organizer Keren Tang.

The friends ordered take-out and met on a video conference.

"We thought: Let’s open this up virtually and bring the conversation to more people," Tang said.

"Because the conversation will be so relevant to the time we're in."

Every week, participants are encouraged to order in from a specific community, or donate to a local charity, that's feeling the pandemic's economic impact harder.

So far, they've chosen to virtually visit Old Strathcona and downtown.

"The foot traffic downtown, particularly at lunch, is considerably lower," Ian O'Donnell of the Downtown Business Association.

"Whatever you can do to support small and medium-sized (businesses) right now – certainly if they are local, and keeping dollars in our community – I can't stress this enough."

But Tang says the focus isn't only on local business, but community, too.

"We’re human. Humans are social animals and we’re always craving interaction, so it’s just really nice to have that connection and emotional support."

To find info about the latest event, Edmontonians can search #EatWithMeYEG on Facebook.

With a report from CTV News Edmonton's Joey Slattery