You’ve been wasting free food in Charlotte. Now, a change will help feed others.
At many Mexican restaurants in Charlotte — including SouthBound — you sit down to a basket of overflowing chips and salsa before you even start browsing a menu. And at Mac’s Speed Shop, it’s soft, savory hushpuppies you’re biting into for free.
Nothing to complain about, right? But for years, the two Mac’s Hospitality Group restaurants have been seeing this free food become food waste. (Not at my table, but maybe yours?)
In just a few days, you’ll start paying up before you chow down. But the cost for those appetizers — just a dollar at each spot — will go toward feeding the hungry in the Carolinas.
Here are the details:
WHO’S INVOLVED: Mac’s Speed Shop and SouthBound are partnering with Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina, which provides food for over 950 agencies and distributes more than 82 million pounds of food and household items annually over 24 counties.
WHAT’S CHANGING: Hushpuppies at Mac’s and chips and salsa at SouthBound previously just showed up at the table automatically. Now, Mac’s Speed Shops will charge $1 for unlimited hushpuppies for two with the purchase of a meal, and SouthBound will charge $1 for unlimited chips and salsa for two with the purchase of a meal. All proceeds from those sales will be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina.
WHY: Food waste from the free offerings prompted Mac’s Hospitality Group to try something different.
WHEN DOES IT HAPPEN: Starting Wednesday, July 20.
Mac’s Speed Shop
Location: Multiple locations
Neighborhood: Lake Norman, Matthews, Steele Creek, South End
Cuisine: barbecue
Instagram: @macspeedshop
SouthBound
Location: 2433 South Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28203
Neighborhood: Dilworth near Brookhill, South End
Cuisine: Southern Californian, Mexican
Instagram: @eatsouthbound
This story was originally published July 18, 2022 at 12:57 PM.
