Millions of Texans are facing a gap in food assistance during the current government shutdown. Austin-area food pantries, restaurants, and other organizations are stepping up, and they'll need help from locals to keep it going.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 10 percent of Texas households receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. In Travis County, nearly six percent of households received SNAP benefits in the past 12 months. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, those benefits paused starting November 1 due to the shutdown, and a battle of court orders and appeals is obscuring whether or not benefits will resume before the shutdown ends.

It is not clear whether full or partial benefits will be required, nor how quickly payouts will happen. Even if it is ruled that benefits must be fully reinstated, any hiccups with resuming SNAP assistance for Americans nationwide will still impact more than 3.4 million Texans (of whom 1.7 million are children).

The following list presents information about where people in Travis County — whether they use SNAP benefits or not — can find food help, where community members can donate, and how to find more information. It will be updated as we hear more. Donors and recipients should check each source they plan to connect with for the latest updates.

Find resources:

If you do not find what you need on this list, consider visiting findhelp.org. It can be overwhelming because it contains listings for many types of aid (food, housing, transit, health, and more), and many listings within each category. However, it can be browsed by ZIP Code and offers dozens of filters, including age group, disability, and urgency.

Food pantry locations:

• Central Texas Food Bank — This food bank is the de facto main resource for locals. Visitors can find food pantries via CTFB and hot meals. The website is a good resource for many ways to get food help, even if they’re not run by CTFB. The organization has also expanded its mobile pantry outreach in partnership with Feeding America.
• Travis County Food Pantry — Travis County’s official food pantry operates six locations, which visitors need to apply to access.
• ATX Free Fridge Project — This is a “completely community based” mutual aid project. Visitors do not need to sign up to access the fridges, and they are open all the time.
• Meals on Wheels — This organization provides help for seniors. People who wish to use the service need to apply.
• Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center — This is one of the best-known organizations for feeding unhoused people in Austin. Volunteers serve free food every weekday at the Sunrise Hub day center in South Austin.
• Riverbat Bites — Austin Community College runs food pantries at all of its campuses. All currently enrolled students can stop by during the hours listed at the link.
• El Buen Samaritano — This partner of the Central Texas Food Bank accepts visitors without a reservation in a drive-up or walk-up line.
• Harvest Blessings — This partner of the Central Texas Food Bank requires visitors to register ahead of time for a pick-up time slot, but it does not require an application.
• Carol's Kindness — This nonprofit collects and redistributes surplus food, including at a food pantry at the Gus Garcia Recreation Center. Carol's Kindness partners with Austin Mutual Aid.
• Food For All — This Pflugerville operation asks visitors to check in, but they can come once a day and do not need to apply ahead of time.
• Hope Food Pantry Austin — Rather than a network, this is a single food pantry inside of Trinity Church in Central Austin.

Restaurant initiatives:

• Get free food:
  • Aci — Free cup of granita (Italian ice treat) November 1 for anyone affected.
  • Fitzhugh Brewing (Dripping Springs) — Free meal of two sandwiches with sides per person to anybody who needs it Thursdays through Sundays. Recipients do not need to bring verification and should ask for the SNAP Meal at the bar.
  • Gopuff — Offering $50 in total credits and free shipping for SNAP recipients. People can connect their SNAP/EBT to their Gopuff account, add SNAP-eligible groceries to their cart, and use the following promo codes: “SNAPRELIEF1” (valid November 1-15) or “cSNAPRELIEF2” (valid November 16-30).
  • Korea House Restaurant — Free meals on the first Wednesday of every month from noon to 4 pm and from 5-8 pm.
  • Swift's Attic and Wu Chow — Free lunch Mondays through Fridays at Wu Chow and free dinner Tuesdays through Saturdays at Swift's Attic. People whose SNAP benefits or federal pay are delayed are invited to stop by. "Just mention you’re there for Family Meal," An Instagram post says. "We will take it from there. No questions asked. No proof needed." Paying diners can ask their server how they can support the initiative.
• Get less expensive food:
  • Too Good To Go — This app connects users directly with restaurants, grocery stores, and other food-related establishments to sell surplus at a reduced cost. Usually users do not know what's in a bag when they purchase it. For example, Snap Kitchen sells what it tallies as $30 worth of heat-and-eat meals for $10; Whole Foods sells a bag of cut fruits, vegetables, dips, salads, or greens for $6.99 (compared to $21 at full price). Users have to pick up their bags during a certain time frame that they can see before buying the bag.
• Raise funds by shopping or drop off food:
  • Meanwhile Brewing — Donating $1 for every draft Darlin’ Lager sold in the taproom to CTFB. There will also be a food drive running through the rest of 2025; there is a list of requested food items on Instagram and Facebook. Anyone who donates will get 15 percent off their tab as a thank you.
  • Parker + Scott — Donating all greeting card sale proceeds to CTFB from October 31 through November 2.

Where to donate:

• Individuals who want to donate money can send it to the Central Texas Food Bank. In a blog post, the organization explains that it works “with major retailers, manufacturers and farmers to get the most bang for your buck. You might be able to buy a few non-perishable goods with $10 at your local retail store, but thanks to our retail relationships and bulk purchasing power, we can turn a $10 donation into 40 meals.”
• Local restaurants that want to minimize food waste can work with Keep Austin Fed, which “rescues” surplus food from partner contributors on a weekly basis. It then delivers the food to partner recipients. The whole network can be viewed here. (This is also a great place to find your next purchased meal if supporting participating restaurants is important to you.)
• The Pflugerville Library always accepts shelf-stable items during operating hours. The library also runs a care kit program that seeks items such as toothpaste, toilet paper, and soap for their hygiene kits.
• People who want to give hyper-individualized help can either financially support Austin Mutual Aid, a grassroots organization that offers responsive help for people with diverse needs, or even check the group's Facebook page to get connected directly with people asking for help. AMA is an incredibly flexible group; having limited guardrails helps them connect with people who have complicated needs or access barriers.

What to donate:

Food pantries all have different policies, and some serve a population with specific needs. For example, some distribution sites help unhoused people who may not have access to things like can openers and microwave ovens.

Many food pantries and other organizations list desired supplies on their websites or social media. If readers know where they want to contribute, they should check there to find out what is most needed.

Using the Central Texas Food Bank as a base resource, here is a list of the types of food donations needed.

• peanut butter
• canned chicken breast or tuna
• canned low-sodium vegetables
• canned fruit in its own juice (no sugar added)
• dry pinto beans
• brown rice
• dry pasta
• non-fat dry milk powder
• 100 percent whole grain cereal
• tomato sauce
• canned tomatoes
• canned entrees

Finally, this one isn’t an official resource, but it's going viral on Facebook. A pastor in Washington, Christie Love, wrote a 28-point list of less common advice from “many years” of experience running a food pantry. That includes: dessert mixes that need limited ingredients are a great treat, meal replacement shakes are a good way to get a lot of calories efficiently, and avoiding glass containers reduces the risk of foods being spilled.

Whatever donors decide, hopefully they don’t let overthinking take up space in their grocery bags.

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If you are a business owner or representative organizing a food drive and would like to submit it to this list, please send us a message here. Please include address, time frame, and a list (or link to a list) of requested items. The initiative must be published on a public platform (e.g. website, Facebook, or Instagram) to be considered.

This story has been updated November 8 to reflect new information about benefits resuming, plus some new entries.