Meals on Wheels Dine Out Club feeds body and spirit
New Hampshire Chronicle | Aug. 4, 2026
MANCHESTER, N.H. —
On a bustling morning at Francoeur’s Cafe in Manchester, customers Joyce Walton and Cyrilla Prescott are thinking alike.
They’re each signed up for the Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County Dine Out Club. The Club provides cards for folks over the age of 60, which allow them to enjoy eight meals per month at local partner restaurants.
“All it takes is to be of that age and fill out the application,” Prescott said. “It’s a great thing because you get to go out, you get to pick from a pre-designed menu that, you know, it’s already nourishing and balanced.”
Meals on Wheels suggests a small donation for a meal, and a tip for the server, but the program is free if people aren’t able to contribute.
“We have our nutritionist work with the owner to do a curated menu that has meals that represent the cuisine of the restaurant but are tweaked so that they’re nutritionally sound and they meet all the different requirements that older adults need,” said Jon Eriquezzo, president of Meals on Wheels of Hillsborough County.
Participating restaurants include Francoeur’s, as well as Chez Vachon in Manchester, the Purple Finch Cafe in Bedford and Soel Sistas in Nashua.
The nutrition part is key for folks like Dotty and Tim Lamonda, who were enjoying breakfast. They said the program has taught them to take a look at their diet at home, as well.
“It gives us a purpose, gives us a direction,” Dotty Lamonda said.
What’s more, since its inception in 2021, the program has helped in more ways than providing a meal.
“In the state of New Hampshire alone, one in four older adults, over the age of 65 live alone and so with that comes an increased risk of social isolation,” said Caitlin Sullivan, senior community investor with the Point32Health Foundation.
The Foundation, which is the philanthropic arm of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, helps fund the project.
Alyssa Novitch, owner of Francoeur’s, said she can see the social impact the Dine Out Club has.
“People start out coming in by themselves, sitting at the counter, and then they meet people, and we see them sit down as two people, and then the group sizes grow from two to four to 12,” she said.
That exact scenario played out for Walton. She once came into the restaurant by herself and saw another woman eating alone, too.
“And so I told the wait staff, if she wants to come over and join me, she can,” Walton said. “We had a wonderful conversation.”
Eriquezzo pointed to the dangers of social isolation on a person’s health.
According to the American Psychological Association, loneliness can increase the risk for heart attack, stroke, and premature death.
“So that’s a big thing,” he said. “The more friends you have, the longer you live.”
Find more information on how to sign up for the Dine Out Club, or to make a donation https://www.hcmow.org/.
Dining and Cooking