I’m still pulling together resources and lists, so I’ll be posting more resources as they become available.
School will be out within a month for most kids in San Diego, and that means there are some parents (and kids) who usually rely on free or subsidized school lunches may find themselves wondering what to do.
Thankfully, a lot of great organizations have stepped up and partnered with local area schools, libraries, rec centers, and civic organizations to provide free breakfasts, lunches, and snacks for al kids 18 and under this summer.
You can search here for a list of California Department of Education sites that offer free meals (some sites offer breakfast, lunch, and/or snacks).
Some Library sites offer lunch too! Here is a complete list of areas that offer free lunches or snacks.
Some County of San Diego Library Locations offer lunch or snacks. Here is a filtered list for the month of June. Most libraries have a print calendar each month available that can be picked up with more info. The El Cajon Library on East Douglas has a really great lunch program in the summer with a fun activity/craft afterwards.
San Diego Unified School District has partnered with some awesome sponsors to host the Sumer Fun Cafe 2018 all over San Diego County! Lunch will be served at over 30 locations all summer for kids 18 and under! The kick off Summer BBQ (with free lunch for adults too) at Skyline Hills Park 6/20/17 10:30am-2:00pm! There are all kinds of activities too!
What I love about this program is that there are tons of rec centers hosting these lunches and they are usually adjacent to a playground, which means after a long morning of playing, the kids don’t have long to wait to get a yummy lunch!
Looking for a few ideas of summer fun with a nearby lunch?
- There is a lunch location down at the Waterfront Park- which is also free! It has a great playground and a splash area.
- The Tierrasanta Rec Center has a cool kids splash ground that’s open early in the day. It’s not free, but it’s pretty cheap ($2/ kid, $4/adult).
If you know of more summer lunch programs for kids in San Diego County, I’d love to hear about them! Please leave a comment!
Hewes Family Fun 
I love this idea and it would really help us but we are vegetarians and not knowing which days will have something we can eat has kept me from participating in the program much. I wish there was a posted list of what is being offered.
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Most sites offer a vegetarian choice each day. Closer to the start date, most locations will have a menu available. The high school based locations frequently have multiple choices per day. My son is almost a vegetarian and he always gets something he likes!
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