(WSVN) - They call themselves “Waste Warriors,” rescuing unused and uneaten food from South Florida restaurants.
And as 7’s Karen Hensel shows, it’s a way you can score some cheap eats.
Restaurants are everywhere in South Florida, serving up plate after plate of fabulous food. But a lot of it never makes it to the table.
Mohammad Farraj/Talkin’ Tacos: “We estimate anywhere between 2 to 5% of revenues could have been from food waste.”
Mohammad Farraj is one of the owners of Talkin’ Tacos. It opened in 2020 as a food truck and quickly expanded.
Mohammad Farraj: “We’re now all over South Florida and also Jacksonville, Atlanta, with plans to open up more locations across the country.”
And each of those locations ends up with wasted food at the end of the day.
Mohammad Farraj: “You get it all the time. Customers order food, they’ll cancel their orders. But you have food that’s been made already.”
Typically the meal ends up in the garbage. But now, there is a way for you to grab it, without breaking the bank.
Sarah Soteroff: “What we’re looking to do is help people reduce the amount that goes into the landfill and get it into the hands of people who really want to eat it and can still enjoy it because it’s still delicious and still perfectly good to eat.”
And that help comes in an app called “Too Good To Go.” It’s an online service dedicated to helping restaurants and other businesses sell their leftover food, at a steep discount.
Sarah Soteroff: “It’s around one-third, 50% off.”
Too Good To Go launched in South Florida back in February, and has already signed on 160 businesses in Broward and Miami-Dade. And you will find more than just restaurants offering up extra food.
Sarah Soteroff: “Also, things like convenience stores, you have maybe some candy bars left over or some chips, anything like that. We can also do bakeries!”
All you have to do is download the app, choose a business, reserve a bag of food, and pick it up during the time frame listed.
Some bags are complete meals. Others are “surprise bags” full of food for less than $6.
Mohammad Farraj: “We have birria tacos, bang shrimp tacos, we have chicken tacos. You have customers and clients who otherwise would really not be able to get premium food and high-quality food at a price point that they could afford.”
How about some French macarons for the holidays?
“Janette & Co” makes and sells them for wholesale buyers. Often they end up with lots of extra cookies that would normally go in the trash.
Alejandra Barrera/Janette & Co: “Macarons, as you can imagine, very delicate. So sometimes, we did have a surplus and sometimes we just couldn’t sell those macarons just because they weren’t completely 100% perfect.”
With Too Good To Go, you can get a bag full of them for just a few bucks.
Alejandra Barrera: “So we feel great that now we don’t have the food waste and clients can actually enjoy it for a smaller price.”
And since you are helping local businesses and the environment at the same time, it makes the treat all the more sweet.
Karen Hensel, 7News.
Click here for more info on ‘Too Good To Go’.
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