Minnesota Restaurant Stops Charging Customers for Food — and Says Business Is Thriving
Minnesota Restaurant Stops Charging Customers for Food — and Says Business Is Thriving
Angelique BrenesWed, June 10, 2026 at 1:32 AM UTC
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Modern Times CafeCredit: google maps -
A Minneapolis restaurant stopped charging customers for food earlier this year and now operates entirely on donations
Owner Dylan Alverson said the move was inspired by both political concerns and years of financial struggles in the restaurant industry
Despite nearly half of diners not paying for their meals, Alverson told The New York Times the restaurant is thriving under its new model
A Minnesota restaurant that stopped charging customers for food as part of a political protest has since seen an unexpected outcome: its business is growing.
At Post Modern Times, a South Minneapolis cafe serving brunch alongside a range of beverages and dietary-friendly options, diners won't find prices on the menu. The restaurant has operated on a donation-only model since February 2026, according to its website.
The shift began in January, when owner Dylan Alverson announced that the restaurant would no longer operate as a traditional for-profit business.
In a statement shared on Post Modern Times' Instagram account on Jan. 26, Alverson said he had decided to transform the restaurant in response to what he described as a "government occupation" in Minneapolis.
"Effective tomorrow we are done making money for the fascists that occupy our city," Alverson wrote at the time. "We refuse to generate taxes under the guise of a functioning for-profit capitalist business aligned with government strategy."
In his statement, Alverson pointed to several deaths that have shaken the Minneapolis community in recent years and months, including the 2020 murder of George Floyd by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, the Jan. 7 fatal shooting of Minneapolis mother Renee Nicole Good during an immigration enforcement operation, and the Jan. 24 killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents.
Alverson noted that the restaurant is located "6 blocks from where George Floyd was murdered, 3 blocks from where Renee Good was executed, and a mere neighborhood away from where Alex Pretti was murdered." He also said he visited the scenes where Good and Pretti were killed and described witnessing confrontations between residents and federal authorities.
"After ICE Agents shot and killed Renee and then Alex, I was at the scene within hours," Alverson wrote. "I witnessed hostile and aggressive armed goons sent by the Federal Government protecting each other from unarmed, outraged citizens."
He went on to describe Minneapolis as living through "the federally sanctioned abduction of our neighbors, public executions of people exercising their rights, and a targeted escalation of government violence," according to the Instagram post.
Modern Times CafeCredit: google maps
"Therefore, for the remainder of the government occupation, we will function as a free and donation based restaurant," he wrote. "Everyone is welcome EXCEPT ICE."
Alverson also said the restaurant's staff had agreed to continue working on a volunteer basis, supported by shared tips and community donations, according to the Instagram post.
The restaurant's website further explains the philosophy behind the transition.
"Post Modern Times was born out of the belief that we are in a fascist economy," the restaurant states. "We refuse to be complacent, and we question why we run businesses."
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The website goes on to explain that Alverson wanted to create a space where community members could eat regardless of their financial circumstances.
While the move drew attention because of its political message, Alverson later told The New York Times that the experiment also stemmed from years of financial challenges operating a traditional restaurant.
"I have succeeded more than I ever did when I was running a conventional business employing 22 people," Alverson told the outlet of the donation-based model. "I think that's proof that something is wrong."
Between 40% and 50% of customers currently do not pay for their meals, yet the restaurant has continued to thrive, The Times reported.
"I've been fighting to make a profit for 15 years, and I don't think it's possible without taking advantage of people," Alverson told the newspaper. "We're stepping out of the system."
Alverson launched Post Modern Times, previously known as Modern Times, in 2011, using money from the sale of a used bicycle business, and spent years trying to make the restaurant financially sustainable. Before the pandemic, the restaurant was profitable most years, though its profit margins never exceeded 10%, he told The Times.
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Modern Times generated approximately $1.3 million in sales last year but still lost $18,500, according to a financial statement Alverson shared with the newspaper.
Not all community members have welcomed the experiment. Alverson told the newspaper that some neighbors have voiced concerns that the restaurant could draw criminal activity.
To help address those concerns, Derek Armstrong volunteers as a security presence outside the restaurant, according to The New York Times. Armstrong previously worked as a "violence interrupter" at George Floyd Square and told the outlet that his role often involves de-escalating conflicts peacefully.
For now, Alverson sees the restaurant as an ongoing experiment. He described Post Modern Times as being in "a creation period" as he searches for a model that could potentially work for other independent restaurants facing similar financial pressures, he told The Times.
"What I realized was happening right away is that we'd created a place of economic equality that doesn't really exist in a business setting," he told the newspaper. "What can we learn from this?"
PEOPLE has reached out to Alverson for comment.
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Source: “AOL Money”
