Entries tagged with 'grocery stores'
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Improv Everywhere released its latest public spectacle, Grocery Store Musical, in which a handful of seemingly ordinary produce-aisle shoppers break out into song, joyously proclaiming the virtue of "squishing our fruit together." Love the "produce manager" riding out in the cart toward the end. Video, after the jump. So worth watching....
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Whole Foods shopping bag carrying the usual fennel, radishes, and gun. Wait what? [wsj.com] The Wall Street Journal is a little skeptical of reusable shopping bags. Just about every chain store seems to have their own custom-made tote, but which is the most functional? Stylish? And made of something you can't pronounce? The piece compares five of the biggest contenders: Whole Foods (features a tree design by Sheryl Crow), Ralphs (made of polypropylene), Target (too Target red-colored), 7-Eleven ("as chic as a Big Gulp"), Trader Joe's (if you're into acid-hued prints), and Dean & Deluca ("all style, no substance"). Related 75 Things You Can Compost, But Thought You Couldn't Serious Green: Plastic-Less Ways to Transport Your Lunch Does Your...
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If a cow and a pig had rap names, they'd obviously be Moo and Oink. They'd freestyle about chitlins, nuggets, baybeh baybeh baybeh spare ribs, and cube steak, and encourage audience participation, naturally. "Gimme a wave if you like catfish! Jump up if it's your favorite dish! Tommy likes ribs and chicken wingsssss. If you like them too lemme hear you scream!" Moo & Oink is an actual Chicago-based grocery chain and meat wholesaler with these two lovable mascots. (Pay special attention at about 0:20 when it gets all technofied. Turn it up!) The video, after the jump....
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"Ever wonder how abandoned shopping carts end up where they do?" Written and directed by Jesse Rosten, with music by Peter Lance. It's long, but good! I can't believe I almost cried. Watch the video, after the jump....
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Photograph from jpockele on Flickr You've probably got your grocery shopping routine down to a science. You pick up pantry staples at your neighborhood Piggly Wiggly, Safeway, Hannaford, or Whole Foods. You try to get fruits and vegetables from your local CSA, farmers' market, or roadside stand. Finally, maybe you grab some specialty items every now and then from Trader Joe's or a gourmet store. Sounds pretty good, but there may still be some options for buying local, sustainable, and green groceries that you haven't explored yet. Co-ops: Grocery Stores That Break the Mold Photograph from takomabibelot on Flickr Cooperative grocery stores (more commonly called co-ops) have come a long way from their days of selling textured vegetable protein...
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Ever since Whole Foods CEO John Mackey wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed piece last week stating that national health care is not a right for all Americans, some liberal groups are threatening to boycott the grocery chain. The company issued an apology to customers, saying Mackey’s "intent was to express his personal opinions, not those of Whole Food Market."...
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The Trader Joe's pirate mascot seems like a pretty easy-going, Hawaiian shirt-wearing guy, until Greenpeace dubs him Traitor Joe. The environmental NGO has devoted a website to the grocery chain's greenwashing, or sneaky ways of marketing products as "green" and environmentally-friendly that aren't. This isn't a protest against pita chips or frozen dumplings—no, the campaign is targeting the red list seafood that Traitor Joe sells from his treasure chest (er, freezer case), singling out the Chilean sea bass and orange roughy. Traitor Joe likes to get his message across in the form of karaoke and Twitter ("Arrrg, I'm at the Brooklyn Trader Joes selling delicious ocean destruction," he recently tweeted.) In response, the real Joe has stated: "We intend...
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Break out the cake and party favors; it's the bar code's 35th birthday. Those alternating black and white bars weren't always around to make our shopping experiences easier. The New York Times celebrates the bar code's birthday with some information behind the development and gradual use of this "technological staple of everyday life." You can add this little tidbit to your trivia database: On June 26, 1974, the first bar code was read off a 67¢ 10-pack of Juicy Fruit gum....
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Hispanic products may no longer be hiding in supermarket aisle corners like the gluten-free breads and Manischewitz yolk-free noodles. Several major chains are expanding their specialty offerings to capture business from Latinos, the country's fastest-growing population and already almost one-sixth of the U.S. total in 2008, according to this MSNBC report. Walmart is in the process of converting two stores (one in Phoenix, the other in Houston) into Supermercados aimed at Hispanic shoppers. According to the Walmart website, the Houston store opened in late April and has a bakery with over 40 traditional sweet breads and fresh corn tortillas, and a meat department with milanesa (kind of like the Hispanic schnitzel), fajitas, and arrachera (similar to skirt steak). This...
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No, this is not the name of a grocery store hidden behind some trees—it is an online grocery store for items that are hard to find. At the Hard-To-Find Grocer, you can find various rare food products, like Sioux City Berry Berry Soda or Van Camp Beanee Weenee. It also carries products from larger brands that often don't make it into stores, such as Duncan Hines Strawberry Supreme Cake. Items are added to the site based on suggestions and requests. Sadly, it doesn't yet have the food of my childhood, Tastykakes (only available in the mid-Atlantic), so I'll have to stay near Philadelphia to get my fix. [via Manhattan Users Guide]...
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