boxed lunches on a table
Olga Ruiz, nutrition services manager at Elmhurst United Middle School, checks the variety of different hot meals offered to students last year. Credit: Pete Rosos

With schools out for summer break, Oakland youth still have several options to receive free meals, including from the city of Oakland, the Oakland Unified School District, and the Oakland Public Library. 

The Oaklandside has rounded-up a list of the sites serving meals to children this summer across the city. Pick-up options don’t require any paperwork and are open to all Oakland children, regardless of what school they attend. 

Oakland Unified School District

Oakland Unified’s meal delivery and meal pick-up programs will run through July 30. 

To qualify for meal delivery, families must have at least one child who attends a district-run school, but all children in the home can receive the meals. The deliveries, which are made once a week, include seven breakfasts, seven lunches, and five suppers per child. And twice a month, the delivery will also include a box of fresh produce. Families can enroll in meal delivery by filling out an online form, which is also available in Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic.

For families who prefer to pick up food, OUSD will continue to distribute meals at Coliseum College Prep Academy (1390 66th Ave.) and La Escuelita (1050 2nd Ave.). On Mondays and Thursdays between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m., families can pick up packages of food for each child in their home. Students attending any school in Oakland, including charter schools, private schools, and homeschools, are eligible for meal pick-up.

Oakland Public Library

Between June 14 and Aug. 6, families can pick up lunches from four library locations twice a week. Children do not have to come with their parents, and families can take home several days of meals at once. All Oakland kids 18 and younger, as well as adults with disabilities who are enrolled in a school program, are eligible. 

Eastmont Branch
7200 Bancroft Ave., Suite 211
Tuesdays and Thursdays
11:30 a.m. until meals run out

Elmhurst Branch
1427 88th Ave.
Tuesdays and Thursdays
11:30 a.m. until meals run out

Main Library
125 14th St.
Wednesdays and Fridays
11:30 a.m. until meals run out

Melrose Branch
4805 Foothill Blvd.
Wednesdays and Fridays
11:30 a.m. until meals run out

City of Oakland

These are open to all Oakland kids 18 and younger, and adults with disabilities who are enrolled in a school program. All locations serve food Monday through Friday unless otherwise noted. 

Acorn Town Center
923 Adeline St.
June 7 through Aug. 6
Breakfast: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Lunch: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

City Towers Resident Service Center
1065 8th St.
June 14 to Aug. 6
Breakfast: 10-11 a.m.
Lunch: 12-2 p.m.

Emeryville Recreation Center
4727 San Pablo Avenue, Emeryville
June 21 to Aug. 6
Breakfast: 8:30-9:30 a.m.
Lunch: 12-1 p.m.

Peralta Hacienda Summer Program
2488 Coolidge Ave.
June 7 to Aug. 6
Breakfast: 9-10 a.m.
Lunch: 12-1 p.m.

Peralta Village
935 Union St.
Wednesdays from June 9 to July 30
Lunch: 12-1 p.m.

St. Andrews Theological University
2608 West St.
June 7 to July 30
Breakfast: 9-10 a.m.
Lunch: 12-1 p.m.

Ashley McBride headshot

Ashley McBride reports on education equity for The Oaklandside. She covered the 2019 Oakland Unified School District teachers’ strike as a breaking news reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle. More recently, she was an education reporter for the San Antonio Express-News where she covered several local school districts, charter schools, and the community college system. McBride earned her master’s degree in journalism from Syracuse University, has held positions at the Palm Beach Post and the Poynter Institute, and is a recent Hearst Journalism Fellow.