Every Seattle Public Schools student can now eat breakfast and lunch at school for free.

The district launched universal free meals with the start of the 2026-27 school year, and on Tuesday, Sept. 8, about a dozen Montlake Elementary students sat at tables arranged in a semicircle in the cafeteria to sample potential new dishes.

A chef cooked on a portable cooktop in the middle while Mayor Katie Wilson and Superintendent Ben Shuldiner watched the kids weigh in.

The menu tryouts included teriyaki salmon, chicken and beef; yakisoba with vegetables; a plant-based "al pastor" soup; Hawaiian-style beef stew; au gratin potatoes; beef quesadillas; smoked-turkey barbecue bowls; and pickled blueberries.

Not every item was a hit. Third grader Nolan Christensen, 8, preferred the beef quesadilla and refused to touch the pickled blueberries. "They looked suspicious," he said.

As we reported Sept. 4, the program eliminates meal payments across all 106 SPS schools. More than half already offered free meals through federal programs. The new policy covers the remaining schools and students who did not qualify under earlier income thresholds.

Wilson said the change removes the stigma of sorting students by family income, according to the Seattle Times.

Shuldiner said cafeteria staff will no longer need to collect payments or determine which students qualify, calling it "a really big deal."

Funding and what comes next

The Seattle City Council approved roughly $8.3 million for the program from two sources: a six-year education levy and a budget surplus from an affordable housing complex in Northgate.

Of that total, $3.6 million came from the housing surplus, approved in a unanimous council vote on Aug. 12. The council also approved $4 million for a separate program providing meals to low-income students on weekends and school breaks, excluding summers.

The proposal was originally sponsored by Budget Chair Dan Strauss, Council President Joy Hollingsworth and Councilmember Dionne Foster, according to the council's announcement. The path to approval was not smooth. In July, Wilson warned the council that the city's general fund already faced a $175 million deficit, according to The Stranger. The council ultimately used the housing surplus and levy funds instead.

City funding is meant to bridge the gap until 2029, when the state's new high-earners income tax is expected to generate revenue. That tax faces a November 2026 ballot initiative seeking its repeal and a separate lawsuit challenging its constitutionality.

Wilson said at the Sept. 8 event that if the state tax does not materialize, the city would need to find another path. "We'll have to have that conversation if it were to come to it," she said.

What families need to do

Even though meals are free, SPS is asking every family to fill out the School Meals Application for Child Nutrition Eligibility and Education Benefit (CNEEB). The district uses the data for federal reimbursement and program planning. Students receive bar codes to track meal participation, according to West Seattle Blog.

Staffing questions ahead

Shuldiner said the district expects more students to eat school meals and will need to purchase additional food and hire more cafeteria staff. The district has not disclosed how many positions it needs to fill. SPS has also not released a school-level breakdown of which schools are newly covered under the expansion.

Student feedback from the Sept. 8 taste test will shape future menus across the district.