Too Good To Go App Review
Too Good to Miss or Too Good To Be True?
Food waste is a serious problem. In urban centers around the world restaurants, groceries and markets throw away surplus food everyday. Too Good To Go is a new(ish) app that aims to reduce food waste by providing a platform for local businesses to sell leftover meals or grocery items that are about to expire.
Sounds good in theory, but is the app really too good to miss? Over few month period I tested the app out at various locations in Queens, NYC. From artisanal cheese shops to leftover Himalayan street food, Too Good To Go had me running around at all hours on a mission to cut waste and with the prospect of saving a few bucks! Continue reading for my honest review of using the Too Good To Go app.
Table of Contents
Too Good To Go App Review - Is Too Good To Go Worth It?
Overall, sourcing meals and snacks on Too Good To Go was a unique way to discover or try new restaurants and shops in my neighborhood. I am not sure if I’ll continue to use the app in the future, but it is worth trying out.
Main Takeaways from Using Too Good To Go
- You can discover or try new restaurants while spending less than $6.
- Leftover pizza & baked goods are the most popular and most easily reservable items on the app.
- The app really does help some businesses reduce their food waste!
- Sometimes you will get a great bargain and other times you will end up with a meal or groceries you really don't want.
- Pick-up times can be inconvenient, especially for dinner.
- The app is user-friendly and new restaurants are regularly added.
- Some restaurants only have a couple slots a week, and you may face competition getting one.
Variety of Meal / Food Options
Depending on your location, the variety and quality of vendors partnering with Too Good To Go varies greatly. Reserving meals through the app was a fun way to discover new restaurants and markets in my neighborhood. I’ve noticed a glut of bakeries and pizzerias, but I was keen on trying more varied meal options. One highlight was trying fried beef momos from Express Eatz, a Nepali/Tibetan street snack spot in Woodside. Even my local Edible Arrangements occasionally shows up on Too Good To Go!
Saving Food from Markets & Grocery Stories
Too Good To Go also features bodegas and markets. Instead of a meal, you receive a bag of assorted grocery items. For me, market orders were a real grab bag. If you’re looking for a meal to eat right away, I do not recommend choosing a grocery store mystery bag. But, if you’re up for a surprise this may be a fun option!
I tried 3 different grocery spots. My first (and most disappointing) Too Good To Go order was a let down. After scrolling through the app, I was excited to rescue groceries on the brink of being wasted. I started my Too Good To Go journey at a small market in Woodside. Knowing this market stocked lots of fresh veggies and Bengali products, I had dreams of turning slightly wilted greens or nearly expired yogurt into a delicious curry! Maybe I could even do the rest of my grocery shopping right there and pick up a fun, new snack to try on the walk home!
Well, my hopes for dinner-inspiring ingredients quickly went out the window when my $5 mystery bag contained a half gallon of Stonyfield organic whole milk and 2 half gallons of Vanilla Silk, all about to expire. Not the variety I was hoping for. But, I must admit that a.) these products were approaching expiration and may have been wasted, and b.) were a good value for $5. At a small market in NYC you could easily spend $5 on just one of the milks. Luckily my downstairs neighbor could use one of the Vanilla Silks.
My other two grocery experiences were pretty good!
Parrot Coffee
Local grocery in Sunnyside carrying a variety of European and Mediterranean imports
Parrot Coffee is the best market I’ve discovered through the app! I walked in to pick up the bag, and I almost walked out with the entire store! A robust selection of deli meats, fresh olives, snacks from a variety of countries – you could spend a lot of money at Parrot Coffee! But, for only $5 I got: a large, circular bread (was almost stale, but improved by toasting), cherry-filled pastry, sliced Hungarian salami and a box of Finn Crisps that are actually good until Nov. I have since enjoyed them with hummus and garlic scape butter.
Stand Alone Cheese
Artisanal Cheese shop in Jackson Heights
Already a patron of Stand Alone, I stalked the app diligently for a few days in order to snag a spot. At only $3.99, Stand Alone is one of the best valued Too Good To Go options! My bag came with a 2-foot long baguette, a piece of Mimolette cheese, a sweet walnut dessert bar, and even a couple fig caramels! High quality items plus a fantastic value!
Ingredient Cooking Challenge
Feeling uninspired on the cooking front? Maybe that is what led you to the app in the first place! Use Too Good To Go surprise grocery bags as fun culinary challenge! I decided that I would try to use whatever came in my Stand Alone Cheese bag in an upcoming meal. Leftover baguette and Mimolette cheese was the perfect starting point for a delicious breakfast: sunny side up eggs, spinach and roasted tomatoes over toast with delicious Mimolette grated on top!
Tip: In the Browse section of the app you can add filters to narrow your search. Only looking for meals? You can filter out ‘bread & pastries’ and ‘groceries’. Or just search for vegan or vegetarian options. There is also a the ability to filter down to a specific pick-up window timeslot.
Mind the Meal Pickup Window
Most of my Too Good To Go pickups went very smoothly. Orders were ready, and the app check-in was easy. I did have one issue where the pick-up window was between 9 pm and 10 pm, but restaurant actually closed at 9:30 pm. I highly recommend double checking the time the restaurant / market closes. If closing time and the end of the pick-up window are the same, you should probably try to arrive at least 5 or 10 minutes before the end of the window so you don’t miss your slot.
Reminder to respect the pick-up window and don’t show up too early. Arriving outside of the designated time frame can be stressful for the businesses and may mean you’ll have to wait around.
Have you tried Too Good To Go in your city?
Share your feedback in the comments below!
Too Good To Go Meal Examples
There is a huge variety of meal and grocery quality across the Too Good To Go app. Here are two more examples of meals I received. Note that the meal or grocery bag from one store can change every time based on what the restaurant is at risk of wasting. These are only examples of a meal could look like.
Best Too Good To Go Meal: 3 Aunties Thai Market 2
Probably the best $4.99 I’ve ever spent. 3 Aunties is an awesome, little Thai convenience / grocery store right off the 7 train at 61st St / Woodside. (This is their second, and larger, location!) 3 Aunties sells pre-prepared dishes from the back of the shop. Honestly, at first I wasn’t sure what quality of meal to expect, but it was DELICIOUS!
My meal included 4 pieces of pork satay with peanut sauce, a single portion size of Pork Kua Kling with fried egg and sticky rice and Black Sticky Rice Custard for dessert! Flavorful, fresh and the whole meal reheated perfectly. This was a 5 star Too Good To Go order for me: solid amount of food, super tasty, easy pickup and even included a dessert item!
Both 3 Aunties Thai Market locations are great places to find unique snacks and products from Thailand.
Meal Example #2: La Adelita de Woodside
La Adelita’s menu features a solid lineup of Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes: tacos, fajitas, burritos, enchiladas, soups, etc. Yum! They also serve a variety of pan dulce, or Mexican sweet breads. The meal I received was tasty, but included a bit of twist!
My meal came with 2 large pan dulces, both on their last leg, but still plenty soft enough. The main meal was definitely filling and a bargain for $4.99. But, it was a bit unexpected. The dish was 1/2 meatballs and tomato sauce, 1/2 rice, beans and sweet plantains. The combo was odd, but both items on their own were delicious and filling. The mystery is that meatballs are not actually on La Adelita’s menu. Not exactly the tacos I was hoping for, but overall a good meal.
Restaurant Perspective on Too Good To Go
What do participating restaurants and groceries have to say about Too Good To Go? So far the feedback has been mixed. The businesses I’ve spoken with all support Too Good To Go’s mission to reduce food waste, but the model aligns better with some businesses than others.
Since the cost to the meal buyer is so low, shops are not making a profit just on the Too Good To Go orders. But, there other benefits. The app really does help cut food waste. According to Purple Dough, a Filipino-American bakery in Woodside, that is the primary reason they sell on Too Good To Go. “It really saved the items [leftover baked goods] and let us make more, fresher items since the end of the day items get to have a second life
"Too Good To Go has been amazing for our grocery! We pick 5 of our top items in the store. It is really nice to see people smile for only $5. 🙂 We gain more and more Too Good To Go orders everyday."
Too Good To Go is ideal for restaurants and bakeries who consistently have leftover goods at the end of the day that go bad or significantly drop in quality overnight. But, for some vendors with fewer perishable items it isn’t a good fit.
For some businesses, listing leftover meals or unsold products on Too Good To Go provided an opportunity for local advertising. (Even I have tried places on the app that are now on my list of restaurants to visit again.) But, Too Good To Go can also pose a reputational risk to restaurants or markets if what happens to be in the meal or grocery bag is not to the liking of the buyer.
Let’s wrap up with a solid piece of advice from a local small business owner using the app:
Also, please bring your own bag, it's environmentally friendly and reduces the cost for the business.
If you’re looking for a low-cost, waste-conscious way to try out new restaurants in your area, I recommend testing Too Good To Go. Keep your expectations low, and you may be pleasantly surprised!
Please share if you think others will find this Too Good To Go App Review useful!
Must-Try Snacks from Around the World!
Tiramisu Oreos: Perfect Pairing or Dessert Disaster?
Tiramisu and Oreos come together! Find out if these two delicious desserts make a good pair in Chinese & South Korean Tiramisu Oreos. (Tiramisu Oreo Review)
Ginbis Tabekko Dobutsu – Japan’s Seaweed-Flavored Animal Crackers
Try the Japanese version of animal crackers, tabekko dobutsu! Sweet, crunchy and even with seaweed bits – a fantastic treat for kids & adults.
Hanuta – Review of Germany’s Popular Chocolate Hazelnut Snack!
Hazelnut chocolatey goodness sandwiched between crunchy wafer cookies! Honest review of this popular German snack, plus a little history!