Minneapolis restaurant that offered free meals to protest ICE raids announces closure

Modern Times Café, which became Post Modern Times during its protest against US immigration enforcement, will close permanently by the end of the year. Owner Dylan Alverson said he had exhausted options for keeping the 16-year-old Minneapolis business going without changing its principles, and plans to spend its final two months celebrating its work and discussing how similar businesses might survive.

The café operated without set prices for about six months, then reopened in August with prices while continuing to offer 25 free meals a day. Alverson said he aimed to run it at zero profit and develop a fundraising model other restaurants could use, but the approach strained staff and led to waits of up to two hours. He said a wider concern is the number of independent restaurants nearing collapse.