Too Good To Go Review: Whole Foods Market - Arabella Store New Orleans, Louisiana

Have You Guys Heard Of Too Good To Go (TGTG)? 

I was looking at food and nutrition apps one night, and came across the Too Good To Go app. Too Good To Go saves surplus food from going to waste, by connecting consumers with retailers (grocery stores, restaurants, bakeries etc.). I think we've all witnessed, at one time or another, store employees throwing away expired or nearly expired food. Its disheartening. Sometimes the food is just thrown away. What a waste! Sometimes it is given to various organizations (shelters, etc.). Too Good To Go has taken on the challenge of preventing food from being thrown away. 

Too Good To Go's History In Fighting Food Waste

Too Good To Go has been in existence since 2016 (it was founded in Copenhagen in 2016). TGTG IS GLOBAL (WORLDWIDE). They are currently active in 17 countries across multiple continents. So practically ANYONE CAN DOWNLOAD AND USE THE APP. 

TGTG's MISSION is to FIGHT FOOD WASTE.  According to WWF (2021), 40% of the food that we produce globally goes to waste. This means that 2.5 billion tonnes of food is wasted every year. This equates to 80,000 kilograms of food being wasted around the world, every single second. Food waste happens at the end of the supply chain, for example when the food has made it to retailers, grocery stores, food service providers and consumer households. The FAO defines food waste as “the decrease in the quantity or quality of food resulting from decisions and actions by retailers, food services and consumers” (FAO, 2019). Why is food waste a problem? Food waste has an enormous impact on society, the economy and the environment. As such, reducing food waste presents a powerful opportunity to make a positive impact on climate change, the cost of living, and food accessibility. 

Reducing food waste is the number one action we can take to help tackle climate change, by limiting the temperature increase to 2°C by 2100 (Project Drawdown, 2020). Easy, effective and rewarding - Reducing or avoiding food waste helps us make a real positive impact on the environment.

 LET ME SHARE MY EXPERIENCE WITH YOU!

Download The Too Good To Go App And See What Retailers Are Participating In YOUR Area!

After reading everything above, I got SUPER EXCITED and wanted to do my part in helping to reduce CO2e!!! I downloaded the Too Good To Go app and set the radius within 20 miles of where I live to see what stores were participating in my area. As of right now (2024), only three (3) stores are participants in the New Orleans Area: Whole Foods (grocer), Krispy Kreme (doughnuts) and Raw Republic (juices). I decided to try Whole Foods. 

What's A Surprise Bag?

Retailers, who have surplus food, will put together Surprise Bags for TGTG customers and list those bags on the TGTG app. The app will show how many Surprise Bags are available, how much the Surprise Bags are worth, how much you will pay (excluding tax) for each and the time you can pick up the Surprise Bag(s) once you make your purchase. You never know for certain, what you will get. I will talk more about that later.

Whole Foods offers both a Bakery Surprise Bag ($6.99 w/ a retail value worth $21) and Prepared Food Surprise Bag ($9.99 w/ a retail value of $30) on TGTG. I purchased ONE BAKERY SURPRISE BAG AND TWO PREPARED FOOD SURPRISE BAGS. My pickup time was between 8-9pm (as of 2024, pick up times are near closing time for the retailer). If you're unable to pick up the surprise bag, the app allows you to designate a friend to pick it up for you. You're also given the option to CANCEL your order. They ask you to cancel at least 2 Hours prior.

An Excellent Experience At The Store

The TGTG app said to go to the Customer Service Desk at Whole Foods, to tell them about my order. The gentleman at the Customer Service Desk was very friendly and directed me to go to the Bakery and Prepared Foods area. The lady in Bakery was very friendly and helpful. She greeted me with a big smile. I showed her the order on my app. She went to the back and got my Bakery Surprise Bag. She asked me to swipe left on my order in the app, to show it had been picked up. The gentleman in Prepare Foods did the same. I was very excited to receive all THREE bags. 

What Was In Each Surprise Bag?

Before I delve into what was in each of my surprise bag, it is important for you to have an understanding of two very important terms: SELL BY DATE and USE BY DATE, (as outlined below). I purchased all three (3) Surprise Bags on 10/13/24.

 Too Good To Go - Whole Foods - Bakery Surprise Bag

 The Whole Foods Bakery Surprise Bag, promised $21 worth of food. 

I paid $6.99 + Tax = $7.30

The Bakery Surprise Bag contained the following, at a retail value of $21.65: 

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie (2 x $1.49 = $2.98)

My Thoughts: Whole Food's Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are REALLY GOOD! I don't know if they make & bake them at the store, but they taste really good. So glad these two were in my bag. I would definitely purchase these with my own money. Excellent! The sell by date was 10/14/24.

 Blueberry Scones (4 Count = $7.49)

My Thoughts: Whole Foods Blueberry Scones are SUPER AMAZING! I wrapped these in Reynolds Wrap and placed them in the over for 30 minutes. Delicious blueberries. Flaky crust. I had them for breakfast along with scrambled eggs, mushrooms and spinach. I would definitely purchase these with my own money. The sell by date was 10/13/24.

 

Ciabatta Roll (4 Count = $3.69)

My Thoughts: Ciabatta Rolls is an Italian bread. They are excellent for making sandwiches. I already know these are good, so I placed them in my freezer for later use. So happy they were in my surprise bag. The sell by date was 10/13/24.

Honey Cornbread Muffin (4 Count = $7.49)

My Thoughts: I love cornbread! But when I initially saw these (and my mom as well), we both turned out nose up at them. The reason for the nose turn-up, was because it said HONEY and they are HUGE! Too much honey can really spoil anything. But let me tell you! I heated one up (in the microwave for a minute and a half) and was PLEASANTLY SURPRISED! Despite how enormous these look, they are light as a feather. They taste so good! Two people can eat off of ONE. You don't even taste the honey. I loved these. So this is a classic example of GIVE SOMETHING A CHANCE...GIVE IT A TRY! So glad I didn't just throw it away. So these Surprise Bags may introduce you to something NEW! The sell by date was 10/13/24.

Final Thoughts: I only paid $7.31 for all of the food above and I ENJOYED EACH AND EVERY ITEM. It was well worth it. If you look at YouTube Too Good To Go Whole Foods Reviews, you'll find that their Bakery Surprise Bags are VERY POPULAR and now I can see why. I would definitely get one or two again. Remember, some items you need to eat right away, you can freeze some items, and if you can't use the item consider giving the items to other close-by family members etc.

Too Good To Go-Whole Foods-Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #1

The Whole Foods Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #1, promised $30 worth of food. 

I paid $9.99 + Tax = $10.93

The Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #1 contained the following, at a retail value of $51.98: 

Lemon Rosemary Chicken Breast ($14.10)

Thoughts: Ok guys! This package of Lemon Rosemary Chicken Breasts smelled so good! It contained three (3) of them. I placed them in a pan, wrapped them with Reynolds Wrap, added some water and put them in the oven. They came out so good and were so delicious. You'll see from my picture below, I had them with macaroni and cheese (which was also in my Surprise Bag), along with a salad. Very tender and flavorful! This alone, paid for what I paid for my entire order. Delicious! The sell by date was 10/13/24 and I used it the next day.

 Macaroni and Cheese ($12.59)

Thoughts: I love Macaroni and Cheese!!! I didn't know if I would like Whole Foods version. I had never tried it. So AGAIN, Surprise Bags are a great way to try things on the cheap. I forgot to tell you, both the Bakery and Prepared Foods Surprise Bags were really cold when they gave them to me. So they keep this food either in the fridge or freezer in their store. So that was great. Their mac and cheese was delicious (so glad I received two, as you will see below)! I would buy it using my own money. It's cheesy and can feed several people. The sell by date was 10/13/24, but if you freeze it you can go longer.

Egg And Cheese Breakfast Wrap ($6.99)

Thoughts: I didn't eat the Egg & Cheese Breakfast wrap, because it contains 1,190 mg of Sodium. My body swells up if I consume too much sodium. This is well over my limit. So unfortunately I threw this away x 2 (as you will see below). I also don't know what the sell by date was for this item. Notice the round yellow 50% Off sticker. Whole Foods did try and sell the item for 50% off.

Pepperoni Pizza Snack Break ($6.99)

Thoughts: I also didn't eat the Pepperoni Pizza Snack Break, because it contained 1,790 mg of sodium. Again, my body swells up if I consume too much sodium. This is well over my limit. So unfortunately, I threw this item away x 2 (as you will see below). The sell by date was 10/13/24.

Vegetarian Classic Cole Slaw ($1.32)

Thoughts: Remember I mentioned above, that the surprise bags are kept cold (refrigerator/freezer). Well it proved to be too much for this delicate cole slaw. The sell by date was 10/13/24. Whole foods may want to just throw things like this away or sell it a day or so sooner than the sell by date. Cole slaw is delicate. Unfortunately, I had to throw it away (the cold had gotten to it) x 2 (as shown below).

Mushroom Stroganoff ($9.99)

Thoughts: The Mushroom Stroganoff was the only item that had a USE BY DATE of 10/13/24. The use by date is very serious, because you should not consume it after that date. When I opened the item, it just didn't smell right. NOT BAD AT ALL, but enough that I didn't want to risk eating it. So you have to use common sense when evaluating each item you receive. It's important! Unfortunately, I had to throw this away x 2 (as you will see below).

Final Thoughts: So out of this bag, I had to throw away four (4) items, either because of MY PERSONAL DIETARY RESTRICTION (sodium), the item was TOO COLD, or IT WAS ABOUT TO GO BAD. The Surprise Bag still paid for itself with the Lemon Rosemary Chicken (DELICIOUS) and the Macaroni and Cheese (DELICIOUS). I would still buy their Prepared Foods Surprise Bag.

Too Good To Go - Whole Foods - Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #2

 

 The Whole Foods Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #2, promised $30 worth of food. 

I paid $9.99 + Tax = $10.93

The Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #2 contained the same items at Bag#1, except it contained deviled eggs instead of rosemary chicken breast, at a retail value of $43.87:

 

 

DEVILED EGGS ($5.99)

Thoughts: Out of the Prepared Foods Surprise Bag #2, I had to throw away 4 items (same ones in Bag #1) and I kept TWO ITEMS: Macaroni and Cheese and Deviled Eggs. Whole Foods Deviled Eggs are SO GOOD! My mom and I thoroughly enjoyed them. The sell by date was 10/13/24. We had to eat these right away.

 

Conclusion: Some take aways from all of this .... POSITIVE: This program is a great way to get some awesome food on the cheap. It's a great way to supplement your food supply at home. It's awesome for both small and large families. It's also a great way to try different food. If you buy two of the same type of bags, you will probably get DOUBLE of the same things in each bag. That can be a plus or negative, depending how many people are in your family. As a single person, I probably won't buy two of the same type of bags again. NEGATIVES: Before ordering, ask yourself if you will be able to eat the food right away? With close expiration dates, you need to be able to do so. If you have a lot of dietary restrictions, this may not be a program for you. Expect not to like everything in your Surprise Bag (so maybe pairing with friends & family to give what you don't like may help). Expect some things to go bad quickly and possibly have to throw away. As of right now, expect to pick up the food an hour before the establishment closes (at night). Despite some of the negatives, I really like the program and feel Whole Food did an excellent job. I rated them highly (as shown below). They just need to tweak how they hand out DELICATE ITEMS (cole slaw) and USE BY DATE (D) Food Items. I hope this review helps everyone. Whew! This was a lengthy and tedious post. HaHaHa

 

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