Tampa spots join ‘Too Good to Go,’ an app that turns unsold food into affordable surprise bags

An app called ‘Too Good To Go’ is helping Tampa restaurants cut down on food waste. It first launched in the fall of 2023 in Tampa, a recent story by St. Pete Catalyst (shared in the We Love Tampa Bay Facebook Group) put it back on our radar.

The app connects customers to local shops that have an excess of unsold food. In Tampa, hot spots such as Kahwa Coffee, Blind Tiger, La Segunda, and Jerk Hut are all participating. Customers receive surprise bags that range in price from $4.99-$10.

“What we do to get you to go is we put those into surprise bags. So you will always see the category, whether it’s baked goods, prepared food, [or] grocery items. And within that, you’re just not going to know the actual itemization of what’s in there,” Sarah Soteroff, the senior public relations manager with the app said in an interview with Fox 13 Tampa Bay back in November. “But you will see the value amount. So you’ll always know how much food you’re getting.”

According to the founder of Too Good To Go, “food waste is responsible for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions.” The founders note that wasting food costs nearly $1.2 trillion each year.

You can learn more about the app online.

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