Review: Too Good To Go App

Last week I got an ad for this app, Too Good To Go, which bills itself as a way of reducing food waste by offering "surprise bags" from local restaurants for half the price (or less). Did you know we waste 30% or more of our food supply in this country? I immediately downloaded the app and found a lot of options around us all day long: the local donut shop, the Ikea restaurant, a variety of convenience store grills (popular in our neighborhood), most of the area Circle K's, and, of course, bougie restaurants and delis. I was impressed to find it wasn't JUST the bougie spots, it was all the places you can find food in our neighborhood.

The first place we tried is Eddie's Southtown Donuts, in our neighborhood. Our child believes simultaneously that Donut Stop is the best donut, while also accepting that any donut from anywhere is still better than no donuts. But until we got this surprise box, she didn't want to risk Eddie's not being as good as Donut Stop. I'm not here for donut wars, but Eddie's donuts are EXCELLENT, and the kid agrees. Eddie's passed muster and is much closer to our house. Our surprise box had 7 donuts, for $5.50!

The second place we tried is Garbanzo, in Clayton. I've seen this place in some of my reward apps for awhile, but hadn't had a chance to try it yet. Francis went to pick this one up, and said they added extra rice bc there wasn't a lot of proteins left at the end of the night. We snacked on the meats, falafel, and pita when he brought it back, and then the next day he refreshed the rice with some butter and scrambled eggs. This was also a $5 bag!

Today I snagged Park Place Market over by the History Museum, and we got an incredible cold pasta salad, croissants, lemon bars (or possible a lemony gooey butter cake?), and a drip coffee, also for $5! SO. GOOD. This spot is super cool, with a wine bar, coffee shop, live music, board game night, and Sunday brunch. We will definitely return to this one!

When Francis posted about Too Good to Go on BlueSky, there were a couple random people (not followers) who had to give the unsolicited opinion that we need to "learn to cook" because this isn't "worth" $5. Look, I get it, some of you have only been working at home since 2020. We have been working at home, and homeschooling, for 10 years. When I worked in an office, I went out to lunch most days. You can't possibly know how much we appreciate a little cheap, random variety in our day. It's always worth $5 to us, no matter how much rice is included.  Not only are we trying new places, we are also saving food from ending up in the trash at the end of the day!