Using tech for take out; how one app offers extra restaurant, grocery foods for less

WASHINGTON ( DC News Now ) — Whether it’s through couponing the old-fashioned way or opting to go online, consumers are finding ways to cut costs across the board.

One such way is by turning to apps that offer saving opportunities — including one that restaurants and grocery stores use to cut down food waste.

The Too Good To Go app allows consumers to pick up extra meals, food products and ingredients from stores and restaurants when they have leftovers.

“You’ll get those discounts toward the end of the day or toward the point when that food is reaching its ‘best before’ date,” said Sarah Soteroff, a spokesperson for Too Good To Go.

When using the app, consumers pick a location, get alerted when food is available and pay for their “surprise bag” that can be picked up.

“I also like to filter based on the kinds of food I’m looking for,” Soteroff told DC News Now, adding, “I also like to cross-reference the stores that I see in the app with, maybe, their Instagram page so you can see the kinds of foods they typically sell.

The app also allows consumers to set a radius for food that’s available or likely to be ready to reserve the same day.

Setting notifications will also alert consumers about bags when people are not actively searching on the app.

DC News Now put the app to the test and reserved a surprise bag at Whole Foods, which recently partnered with Too Good To Go.

Inside were two sizeable soups, three large servings of tuna salad, a quesadilla, a large salad with salmon and a package of pepperoni.

The retail price for all items amounted to $53 dollars, but the app charged just $11 for the bag.

Local business owners previously told DC News Now that other business owners, even smaller in size, can cash in.

“A lot of people need to be aware of these things where, you know, they can utilize all the food that they have, and they can just sell it,” Rani Soudagar told DC News Now last fall.

The Too Good To Go app also said that its goal is to cut back on food waste; something the USDA says accounts for 30 to 40 percent of the US food supply, and for a 31 percent food loss at retail and consumer levels

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