I apparently haven't gotten the hang of this whole blogging thing, since I write a post and then forget about it for half a year. So here's to consistency! Since nobody knows about this blog anyway, I'm going to use this going forward as a place to write down jot down thoughts about groceries (and food in general) for my own reference.
So. . . I'm in Paris this week, which is pretty exciting if you're a foodie. We have a couple good meals lined up (back to some of our favorites from last year), but mostly I'm excited about the outdoor markets and especially the produce stands. Yesterday after a brief jet lagged nap we walked to Rue de Cler and enjoyed perfectly ripe raspberries from an outdoor vendor. The portion size was pretty small, certainly fewer than the average small container you'd get from a grocery store in North America, but unlike my usual domestic raspberry purchases, these were all at the height of ripeness, and not a single one was spoiled. I found that savoring a perfect raspberry helped focus me in the moment and helped me enjoy enjoy our walk through the 7ieme arrondissement even more.
As will probably become a theme over the course of this week, we ended up at Le Grand Epicerie de Paris, possibly my favorite grocery store ever. One of the things I love about this grocery store is that each section (produce, chocolate, meats, prepared foods, sweets etc. etc.) functions as a mini-market unto itself, complete with attendant. At the main checkout, they don't weight foods or look up product codes for non-packaged items--you have to get the attendant in the respective section to weigh or wrap the item and affix the price. Speaking of price. . . this grocery experience certainly has a steep one. I wanted to buy some delicious looking cherries. . . until I realized that the kilogram container would cost me close to 50 Euros! So we just grabbed some juice and yogurt for the morning (one of which---natural Rhubarb in a glass container--I am enjoying as I write this), and some freshly made Chicken Tika, couscous with raisins and glazed carrots from the prepared foods area and dragged our tired selves back through the rain to our apartment.

So apparently I'm really bad at blogging because I just forgot about it for several months. Oops. Good thing basically knows about it so I'm really just writing for myself right now!
Have had too many grocery adventures in the past few months but some highlights involved a tour of various Whole Foods across the country. I must admit that the Baltimore one that I frequented nearly every day while taking summer classes was pretty sub par--I don't think the people who came in clearly just to take samples helped with my comfort level. I always have a way of convincing myself that a trip to a grocery store is necessary (ie: I'll just get a few carbonated waters)--and the result is always a new kind of mustard, a new kind of honey, a new kind of pesto pasta sauce and who knows what else for a minimum total of $50.
The Whole Foods in Las Vegas was my favorite whole foods to date--although the the fact it was heavily air conditioned and it was over 110 degrees outside may have biased me slightly! I liked the fact it had a separate seafood bar, extensive prepared offerings and a mini grill with healthy burgers (and my favorite--sweet potato fries!) in the middle of the store. I know New York City Whole Foods have similar fare, but they're too cramped and busy for my liking. I enjoy being able to browse in peace and not feel like I'm cattle being herded through the checkout area.
Am currently in western Canada where our gourmet grocery offerings are pretty sparse. Safeway is trying to spruce itself up and get a share of the organic market and there are a few smaller places like Planet Organic, but in general I'm not impressed. With the increased affluence in Calgary from the oil boom, I would expect something like Whole Foods would do well. I wonder if Whole Foods has any designs on moving out of the US market?

Last year I was obsessed with Trader Joe's. This was partially due to the fact there was one on my commute home from work and when traffic was bad, or when I was depressed about how boring my job was, I would stop at Trader Joe's for some retail therapy. Since starting grad school and not passing by the store as frequently, I've been shopping more and more at Whole Foods. Well, I went to Trader Joe's a day or two ago, and it seems like they've made a real push to emphasize their low prices. I guess the gourmet/natural food market is getting pretty crowded with Whole Foods becoming more mainstream and grocery stores offering higher quality fare. Looking at the people in line at the Trader Joe's I was shopping at, it didn't seem like the majority of customers were there primarily for the low prices. I overheard one woman ask an employee if they sold iceberg lettuce and he responded no, and that Trader Joe's only carries things that are "cool" and/or that can be sold at a significant discount. Apparently iceberg lettuce is a "give away" item in supermarkets with practically no margin. I understand that with limit space Trader Joe's has to be selective with what they sell, but I think there is something to be said for having a selection of the most frequently purchased foods so your customers don't have to also shop elsewhere (and develop brand loyalty etc.). I would have called it sacrilege at this time last year, but I have to admit that I now prefer Whole Foods. I think we're planning a trip to Trader Joe's later today so I can get another taste.

Salt Spring Island

Have been on the west coast of Canada this week partially for my grandmother's 80th birthday and partially for a bit of sight seeing.....of course this also included scouting out the local grocery scene. On Salt Spring Island, a beautiful island off the coast of Vancouver Island, I went to "Natureworks", the local natural food store. Salt Spring Island is an interesting place-- to generalize, it's half affluent retirees and half hippies. This natural food store was certainly geared towards the latter-- it had a lot of complementary medicines and all the produce, even the berries, were in communal bins, where you scoop your own out. Where possible, the fresh food--fruits and vegetables, baked goods etc.--was made locally, though in reality this was a small fraction of the items. Every Saturday during the summer, Salt Spring Island has a wonderful farmer's market. I imagine the offerings in this store would vary similarly by season. In terms of frozen or branded product it was largely similar to what you find at whole foods, with a bit less selection. One big draw back for me was that it smelled like insence--I much prefer freshly baked cookies.
One of the other grocery stores on the Island was a bit more my style-- Thrifty's Foods: http://www.thriftyfoods.com/common/index.html.
Thrifty's is a chain of grocers that operate only on the west coast of British Columbia. They are full service stores--bakeries, butchers etc., and offer leading brand name products as well as some house brand ones--but they retain a local and somewhat intimate feel. In terms of dairy products, they feature Island Farms, a local company.
More to come on my west coast trip....

NYTimes article- Whole Foods

Interesting article in the New York Times today about Whole Foods
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/28/dining/28whole.html?_r=1&ref=dining?8dpc&oref=slogin

Welcome

Hello out there....at this point that probably means hello to the two people who know about this blog. Regardless. Allow me to introduce myself--Grocery Girl. I'm a graduate student in public health with a passion for grocery stores. As a child, I remember loving tagging along on my mother's weekly grocery trip and trying to sneak new products in her cart. Ever since my 9th grade foray into baking fat free muffins and tofu brownies for my year-end class project, I have been obsessed with trying to create new food products (I'm still convinced I'm going to be the next "Mrs. Fields"). This led me to start looking at grocery stores analytically--what new products last, what combinations of products people buy, what marketing strategies are effective etc. During high school and college as a varsity track athlete I would often find myself with whole days to kill on road trips before evening races. While my teammates watched re-runs of bad sitcoms in the hotel, I would often wander over to nearby shopping plazas and take leisurely inventory of the local grocery landscape. At the end of college I cleaned out my wallet and found close to a dozen "frequent shopper" cards acquired during these road trips. After graduating I worked for several years in financial research, the high point of which was getting to follow supermarket financials and retail trends--at one point, my boss and I went on a tour of WEGMANS (the best large supermarket ever). This was almost enough to make up for the tedium that was the other 90% of my job. After putting my time in and saving some money, I applied for graduate school and am now happily taking classes towards a masters degree in public health. My specific interest is in consumer behavior and grocery stores and I'm doing some research in that area in conjunction with my classes. This blog, however, is not meant to be academic-- I just wanted to explain how I came to my passion for grocery stores. Over the next year I'm going to be traveling a lot and whether abroad or at home, I intend on positing my reflections on my multiple weekly visits to assorted grocery stores, specialty food shops, farmers markets etc.--any place where food is sold for later consumption. I'm sure I'll also feel compelled to write about what tasty creations result from these store visits! Enjoy :)