So the long awaited Earth Fare grand opening in my neighborhood finally happened today.
I pulled in bright and early for my much anticipated blogger tour. It was packed! Cars filled the parking lots and overflowed in the nearby streets, it was truly a big event!
As I was walking in, feeling giddy with excitement and wonder, I realized how lame I would have thought I was if this was 5 years ago. Feeling so much excitement over a grocery store opening? HA. Anyway, back to the point. I am in love! When I first walked in, I was greeted by the beautiful produce department, my favorite. They had perfect arrangements of local and organic produce and to my surprise the prices were not higher than a normal grocery store. For example, Mango’s were 4 for $5. Bunches of fresh Kale were 2 for $5, and fresh local Peaches were $.97 a lb.
Next, I checked out the bulk and snack section. I love buying in bulk, especially when you find a great sale on something like nuts. I will load up and freeze the extra so I always have them on tap. They had specialty flours, tons of nuts, crispy carrot and green bean chips, and of course a large selection of candy. The great thing about Earth Fare is when you buy snacks like candy or chips, you can be sure they are not loaded with detrimental ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, artificial dyes, and dangerous preservatives like MSG.
The fresh meat and seafood department was next on my tour. There was a woman frying up samples of the thickest, most delicious looking bacon I have ever seen! The meats were a bit on the pricey side, if I remember correctly, the bacon for example, was around $7 a pound. I think I will stick to my local farmer for my meats, but it is great to know they offer antibiotic/hormone free products just in case.
The dairy and egg section was great. They offered grass-fed products, free-range organic eggs, and for people with allergies, products like almond milk yogurt and milk.
Next I checked out the middle isles. I think my most exciting find was in the baking isle. They had palm sugar!!!! I have never been to a store that has carried palm sugar before! If you are wondering what this is, I just recently wrote a post about it, Super Ingredient #4… Palm Sugar. You have to try it out!.
I also was pumped that they had organic raisin tubs on sale for 2 for $4. My boys are all about raisins. I also found some great almond butter made in peanut-free facility, which is great for my son who has a peanut allergy. Then of course you can find your cereals, chips, condiments, etc. Personally I don’t buy too many things that come in a box or a can, so I did not pay these items too much attention. But once again, it is great to know that if you purchase a box of cereal, you wont find things like BHT or artificial dyes/sugars.
Then of course there is the specialty section where they have tons of top quality cheeses and wines, the beauty/health section where you will find natural paraben-free shampoo’s and lotions, and the deli/restaurant/coffee area where you can browse all sort of different stations such as fresh pizzas, pasta’s, meat, salads, and even sushi, and I have to say, I have never seen such delicious, beautiful looking food before. Seriously, everything I saw looked absolutely mouth watering! They even have a kids-eat-free night every Thursday night, although I hear it gets pretty packed.
Now, as far as grocery stores go, I love me some Trader Joe’s, but I have to say I think Earth Fare actually trumps TJ. Its true. They have a much larger selection, they do offer sales, they have a great butcher area with fresh cuts of meat, you can literally sample any item in the store, and of course as I mentioned they have a self-serve restaurant in the store itself. Although, most of Trader Joe’s prices are lower, and I will still go there for my favorites: frozen pesticide-free blueberries, Kerrygold butter, Ezekiel 4:9 Bread, organic orange juice, and their crackers (when I don’t have time to make my own). I also am going to keep buying my meats, eggs, and dairy from local farmers. But for everything else Earth Fare is going to be my new weekly hangout!
I pulled in bright and early for my much anticipated blogger tour. It was packed! Cars filled the parking lots and overflowed in the nearby streets, it was truly a big event!
As I was walking in, feeling giddy with excitement and wonder, I realized how lame I would have thought I was if this was 5 years ago. Feeling so much excitement over a grocery store opening? HA. Anyway, back to the point. I am in love! When I first walked in, I was greeted by the beautiful produce department, my favorite. They had perfect arrangements of local and organic produce and to my surprise the prices were not higher than a normal grocery store. For example, Mango’s were 4 for $5. Bunches of fresh Kale were 2 for $5, and fresh local Peaches were $.97 a lb.
Next, I checked out the bulk and snack section. I love buying in bulk, especially when you find a great sale on something like nuts. I will load up and freeze the extra so I always have them on tap. They had specialty flours, tons of nuts, crispy carrot and green bean chips, and of course a large selection of candy. The great thing about Earth Fare is when you buy snacks like candy or chips, you can be sure they are not loaded with detrimental ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, artificial dyes, and dangerous preservatives like MSG.
The fresh meat and seafood department was next on my tour. There was a woman frying up samples of the thickest, most delicious looking bacon I have ever seen! The meats were a bit on the pricey side, if I remember correctly, the bacon for example, was around $7 a pound. I think I will stick to my local farmer for my meats, but it is great to know they offer antibiotic/hormone free products just in case.
The dairy and egg section was great. They offered grass-fed products, free-range organic eggs, and for people with allergies, products like almond milk yogurt and milk.
Next I checked out the middle isles. I think my most exciting find was in the baking isle. They had palm sugar!!!! I have never been to a store that has carried palm sugar before! If you are wondering what this is, I just recently wrote a post about it, Super Ingredient #4… Palm Sugar. You have to try it out!.
I also was pumped that they had organic raisin tubs on sale for 2 for $4. My boys are all about raisins. I also found some great almond butter made in peanut-free facility, which is great for my son who has a peanut allergy. Then of course you can find your cereals, chips, condiments, etc. Personally I don’t buy too many things that come in a box or a can, so I did not pay these items too much attention. But once again, it is great to know that if you purchase a box of cereal, you wont find things like BHT or artificial dyes/sugars.
Then of course there is the specialty section where they have tons of top quality cheeses and wines, the beauty/health section where you will find natural paraben-free shampoo’s and lotions, and the deli/restaurant/coffee area where you can browse all sort of different stations such as fresh pizzas, pasta’s, meat, salads, and even sushi, and I have to say, I have never seen such delicious, beautiful looking food before. Seriously, everything I saw looked absolutely mouth watering! They even have a kids-eat-free night every Thursday night, although I hear it gets pretty packed.
Now, as far as grocery stores go, I love me some Trader Joe’s, but I have to say I think Earth Fare actually trumps TJ. Its true. They have a much larger selection, they do offer sales, they have a great butcher area with fresh cuts of meat, you can literally sample any item in the store, and of course as I mentioned they have a self-serve restaurant in the store itself. Although, most of Trader Joe’s prices are lower, and I will still go there for my favorites: frozen pesticide-free blueberries, Kerrygold butter, Ezekiel 4:9 Bread, organic orange juice, and their crackers (when I don’t have time to make my own). I also am going to keep buying my meats, eggs, and dairy from local farmers. But for everything else Earth Fare is going to be my new weekly hangout!
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