Elaine Elite Kitchen owner Connell Johnson opened his soul food restaurant at Crossgates Mall as a tribute to his late mother in December 2024. Since its opening, Johnson has worked to attract new customers. He’s networked at his local church, posted on social media and, as of Wednesday, has sold meals on Too Good to Go, an app allowing restaurants to sell surplus foods at lower prices.
Johnson said he decided to take part in the platform after a representative of Too Good to Go came into his restaurant and asked if he was interested in joining.
“I said OK, that sounds like another opportunity to promote my business, my restaurant, and have people know about it elsewhere,” Johnson said. “My mother was always a helpful person, and it’s to honor her too, to feed the neighborhood.”
The app has recently gained traction in the Capital Region, as Too Good to Go started adding more partners earlier this summer, said the company’s U.S. public relations manager Molly Sposato. Its official launch in the Albany area will occur at the end of August, Sposato said. On Friday morning, more than 30 restaurants in the greater Capital Region and northern Hudson Valley had food listed on the app…