The dollar menu answer

By Michael V. Hannigan

As I begin the SNAP Challenge this morning I already have an observation. No conclusion yet, just an observation.

Nearly everybody says the same thing when I tell them what we are doing. Invariably, regardless of age or gender, everyone has said some variation of, “Time to hit the dollar menu.”

Some said it as a joke and some offered it as advice, but almost everyone had the same thought.

It appears that we have been trained like Pavlov’s pets to link the phrase “cheap food” to “dollar menu.” Kudos to the Mad Men of advertising.

Unfortunately, it is a really bad strategy that will leave me hungry and malnourished.

Think about it. The SNAP food stamps daily allowance is $4.80. Take that to any fast food restaurant that serves breakfast and you can get some type of egg sandwich and drink for $2 plus tax. At lunch, you can get some type of .99 cent burger and a drink for $2 plus tax. That should leave me about .50 cents for dinner and a need for around 1,500 calories … plus I’ve had no fruit and no veggies.

Maybe that’s why you can’t use the Lone Star Card, the Texas version of food stamps, at restaurants. So I believe I will be staying away from the dollar menus.

SNAP FACTS – Things that cannot be purchased with the Lone Star Card (source: Texas Health and Human Services Commission):

• Beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes or tobacco;
• Any non-food items (For example, pet foods, soaps, paper products, and household supplies);
• Vitamins and medicines;
• Food that will be eaten in the store;
• Hot foods.