From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmeal ticketˈmeal ˌticket noun [countable] 1 informalDEPEND ON/RELY ON something or someone that you depend on to give you money or food There were times when he suspected he was just a meal ticket to her.2 PEWa card that you buy and then use to get meals at school or work, or at a special event The meal ticket is $15 and includes three meals with beverages.
Examples from the Corpus
meal ticket• It's amazing what some men will do for a meal ticket.• There were times when he suspected he was just a meal ticket to her.• It only became a moot point because David was a meal ticket for so many people.• For much of Pennington's working life, Shakespeare has been his mission and his meal ticket.• My M.B.A. has not been the meal ticket I had hoped. 