Minneapolis free-meal restaurant closes after six months of zero-price
Modern Times Café in Minneapolis will close by end of 2026 after running on donations proved financially unworkable.
Modern Times Café, a 16-year-old Minneapolis restaurant, will close by the end of 2026. In January, owner Dylan Alverson renamed it Post Modern Times to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.
The restaurant had no set meal prices. It promised entry to everyone "except ICE."
This model lasted about six months. The restaurant briefly closed in July.
When it reopened in August, it started charging again. But it still gave 25 free meals each day.
By October, Alverson said the restaurant made zero profit. Some customers waited up to two hours for meals.
Concerns about homeless visitors in the area forced the price change. Alverson told Fox News Digital a bigger question: how many independent restaurants are near collapse?
- 16 years
- Years operating
- 25 meals
- Free meals per day after reopening
- 6 months
- Months of no-price operation
- zero
- Profit margin reported
Why it mattersThe closure shows that protest-driven business models have limits. It raises questions about whether restaurants can survive while focusing on giving food away instead of making money.
AustraliaNo direct Australian impact, though independent restaurants globally face similar pressures around pricing, staff, and community expectations.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
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