A Minneapolis restaurant that scrapped menu prices to protest federal immigration enforcement is preparing to shut its doors permanently. Modern Times Café owner Dylan Alverson announced that the business will close by the end of 2026. Earlier this year, he renamed the establishment Post Modern Times and replaced ordinary meal prices with a donation-based system. The restaurant later brought prices back, while continuing to distribute a limited number of free meals each day.
The experiment began in January amid Operation Metro Surge, the federal immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota. Alverson announced that customers could eat without paying and specifically excluded ICE from his business. His objection extended to generating revenue under a government whose immigration operations he opposed. “Effective tomorrow we are done making money for the fascists that occupy our city,” he wrote when announcing the change.
Alverson also publicly rejected operating under the usual for-profit model and described the restaurant as having struggled financially since 2020. In his January announcement, he said the donation arrangement would continue for the duration of what he characterized as a government occupation. The new Post Modern Times name accompanied that shift. His announcement ended with an explicit restriction: “Everyone is welcome EXCEPT ICE.”
The restaurant continued under that arrangement for approximately six months before announcing a temporary shutdown in July. In a social media post, the business reported serving approximately 30,000 meals and receiving more than 2,000 donations. Alverson planned to take a break before resuming service. When the café reopened in August, it restored menu prices, eliminated tipping and offered 25 free meals daily.
The restaurant’s financial problems predated its anti-ICE pricing experiment. As Alpha News reported, financial records previously examined by The New York Times showed approximately $1.3 million in annual sales alongside an $18,500 loss. Alverson paid himself just $23,000 annually. According to the earlier account quoted by Breitbart, he also served as the restaurant’s manager, chef and repairman.
The final closure announcement came in an October 17th Facebook post, according to FOX 9. Alverson said he’d spent six years attempting to preserve the business and had reached the end of the options he considered compatible with its principles. He described the decision as difficult and said the remaining months would provide an opportunity to celebrate the establishment’s nearly 16-year history. He also promised additional information about the decision and the restaurant’s final months of service.
Watch FOX 9’s earlier report on the restaurant’s free-meal initiative here:
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FOX 9 had previously interviewed Alverson about the initiative during the January immigration operation. He described offering meals without prices as a way to comfort people in the surrounding community. Discussing his decision with the station, he said, “I guess I was gambling on humanity.” The station’s January 29th report covered his café alongside another Minneapolis business responding to the enforcement operation.
Alverson’s October announcement also called for examining what would allow businesses operating on similar principles to survive. He said he wanted the remaining period to recognize the café’s emphasis on creativity and hospitality over financial returns. His closing message urged supporters to challenge the conditions he blamed for the shutdown. “This has been an incredibly difficult decision and one that did not come lightly.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.