About Congregate 

Meals & Choice Menus

Currently, many congregate meal sites across the 

United States offer only a single option menu. However, 

if a participant does not like part of a meal or the whole 

meal itself, they are less likely to return to the meal site. By 

changing from a single option menu to a choice menu, 

it is possible to increase meal site participation and gain 

more satisfied participants. 

According to the Administration for Community 

Living (ACL), there were about 1.6 million older adults 

participating in the congregate meal program each 

year from 2011 to 2018. There was a slight decline in 

participation between 2011 and 2014 (from 1.72 million to 

1.56 million, approximately), but numbers remained stable 

from 2014 to 2018. From 2012 to 2018, the average annual 

retention rate for congregate meal site participants was 

78 percent. 

To increase participation rates, Senior Nutrition Providers (SNPs) have used various 

programs to increase the number of choices offered, types of meals offered, and 

the environment in which the meals are being offered. SNPs in Iowa and New Jersey 

are offering Cafés by partnering with local restaurants. The restaurant model allows 

participants to choose their meal, sides, and drinks. In Colorado, a SNP uses a 

restaurant program to provide a vegetarian, sandwich, and entrée salad option at 

every meal. 

With an increase in popularity of different programs, more SNPs are interested 

in updating the number of choices offered at congregate meal sites to offer an 

experience more like restaurants and cafés. A choice menu allows each consumer 

to select a meal or part of a meal, such as the entrée, sides, and/or drinks. Choice 

menus are an effective strategy to improve congregate meal participation. 

Sources:

1. Kahn-Lang A, Shenk M, and Mabli J. Program Entrance and Retention in the Older 

Americans Act Title III-C Nutrition Services Program. 

https://acl.gov/sites/default/files/programs/2020-07/AoA_brief_entrance_

retention.pdf 

This project was supported in part by grant number 90PPNU0002 from the U.S. Administration 

for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. 

Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express 

freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily 

represent official ACL policy.
Choice Menu Tip Sheet

Gain participant feedback about choice menus.

Use methods such as suggestion boxes, a survey handed out to participants, or 

by asking for in-person feedback. Possible questions may include:

What type of meals?

• Vegetarian, low carbohydrate or controlled carbohydrate, low sodium, culturally 

relevant meals, specific hot or cold meals, gluten-free options, etc.

What meal components would they like to choose daily?

What types of drinks should be offered? 

• Water, iced tea, milk, chocolate milk, coffee, etc.

Develop menu items that fit the community. 

Consider the culture, ethnicities, and languages represented at the congregate 

meal site. Ideas to develop appropriate meal items for the community include:

Add culturally relevant meals.

Offer menus in different languages.

• If there is a large Spanish speaking population at the meal site, develop a menu in 

Spanish. Invite Spanish speaking participants at the meal site to volunteer and help 

educate staff. 

Identify any religious accommodations that may help increase participation.

Start by increasing menu choices over a period of time.

Too many choices can increase food cost, labor cost, and stress for participants 

and staff/volunteers. Tips to introduce a choice menu include: 

Begin by offering two different entrées and serve with the same sides.

• Make sure the entrées work well with the sides being offered.

• Entrées could include a meat/meatless option or an opportunity to choose the 

protein (example: chicken, beef, etc.). Some programs start simple with “always 

available” options, such as a baked chicken breast or hamburger.

Later, add an entrée salad, sandwich, and/or soup option.

• If adding a daily entrée salad, sandwich, and/or soup option is not possible, try 

adding each on a weekly basis instead. 

See sample choice menus in Appendix A and Appendix B.

An ideal number of choices is between eight and 15, with two to five choices per 

menu category.

Develop a process for ordering, production, and delivery of 

choice menus.

Proper planning ensures a choice menu option works for staff and participants. 

Think about if choice meals will need to be ordered in advance and how far in 

advance.

Develop or identify production reports to track the number of choice meals.

Ensure processes allow enough time for sourcing all menu items

Evaluate the new menu.

Look for ways to make programs better and able to grow with changing needs.

Ask participants and staff what they think of the new choice menu:

• What is working well?

• What changes would they like to see?

Ask for participant feedback often.
Choice Menu Pros and Cons

Pros

• Increase in participation of older adults 

• Increase in participant satisfaction

• Improvement of perceived meal quality

• Greater variety of foods

• Includes various preferences 

◊ Helps reduce the gaps between different generational needs

◊ Addresses cultural and religious preferences and needs

• Increase in voluntary contributions due to a higher perceived quality of food

• Decrease in stigmas about the program

Cons (and ways to overcome)

• Increase in food cost

◊ Food cost can be offset with increased participant satisfaction. Monetary contribution amounts 

tend to increase when participants view the meal they receive as higher quality. 

◊ Use standardized recipes to prepare meals for the number of participants expected each day.

• Increase in labor cost

◊ Encourage volunteers to assist in daily meal activities. 

◊ Plan production tasks to maximize labor.

• Increase in stress from too many choices

◊ Survey the participants at your meal site to ask what choices they would like to have in terms of the 

meals being offered. 

◊ Ask if they want to choose between a meat or vegetarian entrée option. Ask if they want to choose 

from a variety of sides.

◊ Use symbols to promote a “special” for the day to reduce choice anxiety and steer selections.

• Increase in menu development difficulty

◊ Use a cyclic menu to reduce the number of individual meal ideas. 

◊ Create a consistent meal schedule.

For more information and guidance on menu planning for senior nutrition 

programs see the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and Older Adults: Toolkit for 

Senior Nutrition Programs
Appendix A: A Simple Choice Menu

Menu

ENTREE

Cheese Pizza

Beef Stroganoff

VEGETABLE

Steamed Broccoli

FRUIT

Fruit Cocktail

DESSERT

Sugar Cookie

BEVERAGE

Milk

Chocolate Milk

Water

Appendix B: A Complex Choice Menu

Menu

ENTREE

Cheese Pizza

Beef Stroganoff

Chef Salad

Soup of the Week

Deli Sandwich (Ham & Cheese or 

Turkey & Cheddar)

VEGETABLE

Steamed Broccoli

Green Beans

FRUIT

Fruit Cocktail

Peaches

DESSERT

Sugar Cookie

BEVERAGE

Milk

Chocolate Milk

Iced Tea

Coffee

Water