Hastings restaurant to offer free meals to SNAP recipients every Tuesday in November
With food shelves overwhelmed and food stamp benefits ending on Nov. 1, a couple that owns a restaurant in Hastings, Minnesota, decided they couldn't just watch.
At Lock and Dam Eatery, the restaurant will soon be serving a different kind of meal, meant to ease the burden of hunger. The restaurant's owners posted a message to Facebook offering to feed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipient families for free on Tuesdays in November.
"I just truly think there are so many in need," said Jennifer Melecio, who co-owns the eatery. "I also think there are so many that want to help, and we just have to find a way to do it."
That community spirit couldn't come at a more critical time. Blocks away, Hastings Family Service, which operates the local food shelf says need has skyrocketed.
"It's actually grown a lot, really since the pandemic," said Executive Director Amy Sutton. "Over the past three years, we've already seen 171% growth in need for our food programs."
For those who run the food shelf, the fear isn't just what happens if benefits stop.
"The people who we're serving aren't just losing SNAP benefits, they're experiencing higher health care costs, cuts in child care," said Sutton.
"Yesterday we heard the doorbell ring at our back loading dock, and I opened the door expecting to see a neighbor looking for their full food shelf order, but it was somebody handing me a box of food," said Director of Programs Amy Tix.
"We're having people stop in and bring in checks and donate checks, as well as people calling and asking, 'how can I volunteer? How can I help?'" said Tix.
That's the same spirit driving Melecio and her husband Fernando, turning their restaurant into a place of hope.
"We won't turn anybody away. We will, you know, we'll feed all that we can," said Melecio.
The Lock and Dam Eatery also serves a free Thanksgiving meal for families in need. After serving a little over 150 people in 2024, she won't be surprised if that doubles this year.
Earlier Tuesday, 25 states including Minnesota, sued the Trump administration over the SNAP food stamp funding freeze.