The Washtenaw County Health Department is encouraging local restaurants to join the Restaurant Meal Program, an initiative that allows customers to use their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits for ready-to-go meals.
Angela Parsons is the senior management analyst with the Washtenaw County Health Department. Parsons said the program has been implemented in Michigan for a few years, but the county only started to promote it recently. With the help of summer interns, the department learned more about the program and started getting the information out to the community, Parsons said.
“We see the big benefit, really a win-win situation, both for our licensed restaurants and for the folks who are eligible to participate in the program,” Parsons said.
The program is for anyone who receives SNAP benefits and is 60 years or older, disabled and receives disability, homeless or is the spouse of someone who fits into one of these categories. Any eligible participants are automatically enrolled; eligibility messages are sent to the MIBridges account.
Typically, SNAP is only taken at grocery stores, and recipients can only buy ingredients, not hot, prepared foods, Parsons said. The Restaurant Meal Program is intended to increase access for community members.
“It's targeted for folks who are more vulnerable in our community, who may not have access to cooking equipment or may have disabilities that might limit their mobility,” Parsons explained.
Currently, in Washtenaw County there are eight participating restaurants: Subway at four locations, KFC, Issa’s Pizza, Papa John’s and Stimulatte Cafe. The process to sign-up takes a few months; applications have to be sent to officials at the state and federal level to be approved, Parsons said. There are some restaurants currently pending in the approval process.
While it is free for the restaurants to join the program, the one possible barrier is that many point-of-sale systems don’t have a way to process SNAP benefits or. In those cases, the restaurant would have to purchase a new system that can do that function.
Khalid Awwad, the owner of Stimulatte Cafe, said he had to buy a new point-of-sale system because the original interface couldn’t process EBT cards. Awwad initially found the program after visiting a McDonalds that accepted EBT and then researching it more.
“This could be very beneficial for the community and our business as well,” Awwad said.
Since starting the program back in February, the cafe has averaged four or five customers a month using their EBT cards, Awwad said. He believes that while they had to pay for a new system and they get charged per swipe, it is worth it for the community.
“This is a benefit; take it, enjoy your time,” Awwad said.
Awwad has been posting on the cafe’s socials about the program and customer’s being able to use their SNAP benefits, but the posts get comments claiming it’s AI, he said. Even after months of posting about the program, people are still shocked, Awwad said.
Along with taking EBT cards, Stimulatte Cafe also gives a 5% discount for students, faculty and staff of EMU, WCC and Ypsilanti District Schools.
For more information and a map of all participating locations in Michigan, SNAP recipients can visit the Washtenaw County Health Department website.
