1. Two layers of data

foodnear.me combines discovered listings (public open data) with verified listings (owner-approved Menu Protocol menus). They are not the same trust level.

Discovered — name, location, and basic attributes imported from third-party open datasets. Menus are not owner-verified unless stated otherwise.
Verified — restaurant operators approve structured menu data published through Menu Protocol. Agent search ranks verified venues first; use menu_available on API and MCP results before calling get_menu.

2. OpenStreetMap

Many discovered listings include data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

License: Open Database License (ODbL) 1.0 — see Open Data Commons ODbL summary
How we use it: restaurant and food-related points of interest (amenities such as restaurants, cafés, bars, and similar tags) via the public Overpass API, filtered by geographic region.
Limitations: community-maintained data may be incomplete, outdated, or include closed venues. We do not treat OSM as a source of authoritative menus or prices.

If you use foodnear.me data in your own product or research, you must comply with OSM's attribution and ODbL requirements for any OpenStreetMap-derived content you redistribute.

3. NYC Open Data

Listings in the New York City area may include attributes from the City of New York's open data program, including restaurant inspection results.

Dataset: DOHMH New York City Restaurant Inspection Results (CAMIS identifiers used as stable record keys where applicable)
Typical fields: business name, location, cuisine description, and inspection grade when available
Portal: NYC Open Data

NYC data is used to enrich discovered listings in NYC boroughs; it does not replace owner-verified menu content.

4. Other regions (Tier 1 metros)

Outside NYC, discovered coverage is primarily from OpenStreetMap per metro bounding boxes (for example Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Austin, and other Tier 1 US markets). As we add municipal open-data feeds for additional cities, we will list them on this page.

5. Verified menus (Menu Protocol)

Menu Protocol (MP) documents submitted and approved by restaurant operators are separate from OSM and NYC Open Data. They are governed by your agreement with foodnear.me and our Terms of Service, not by ODbL.

6. API, MCP, and agents

Search responses include verification_status, menu_available, and data_source where applicable. Discovered results include a trust notice advising agents not to cite menu items without owner verification. See our MCP server and OpenAPI specifications.

7. Corrections and claims

Restaurant operators can claim a discovered listing and publish verified menu data:

Use the claim link on a listing or visit pricing / support to get started
To report inaccurate location data or request removal, contact api@foodnear.me

8. Changes

We may update this page when we add data sources or change import regions. The "updated" date at the top reflects the latest revision.

This page summarizes attribution requirements for beta operations. It is not legal advice. Consult qualified counsel for compliance in your jurisdiction, especially if you redistribute combined datasets.

Data Attribution