Overview

The Restaurant Meals Program (RMP) allows certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients to use their benefits to buy discounted meals from authorized restaurants.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the RMP, all members of the SNAP household must be either:

• Age 60 or older;
• disabled;
• homeless; or
• a spouse of a SNAP recipient who is aged and/or disabled

These vulnerable households may not have access to what they need to properly store and prepare food or may not be able to prepare meals themselves.

SNAP recipients will be notified if they are eligible to use their benefits at participating restaurants. To participate in the RMP, you must have received a letter from the State of New York affirming your ability to participate in the program.

Restaurants must apply and become certified before being able to participate. Once certified, participating restaurants must offer meals at a 10 percent discount on all menu items, except alcohol and accept SNAP benefits as payment.

Pilot Program and Roll Out

The New York State RMP rollout is expected to begin in early 2024 in Monroe County (Rochester). Restaurants that have worked with the City of Rochester or the State of New York to get hot meals to food insecure individuals during COVID have been invited to participate in the first phase of the program. Please check back in December 2023 for a list of participating restaurants.

After a successful launch, restaurants throughout Monroe County will be able to apply to participate in the RMP and begin accepting SNAP benefits as payment. The program will then be expanded to other counties over time.