Once upon a time, grocery stores were where we bought bread. The white kind. Not gluten-free, sprouted-grain or artisanal.
It's where we got milk. From a cow. Not from a nut, grain or bean.
It's where we bought grape juice. The purple kiddie kind. Not a goblet of wine to be leisurely sipped in the store's lounge.
Grocery shopping is less of an errand and more of an experience. Or so we observed on a recent comparison shopping expedition of four modern stores in Little Rock: The Fresh Market, Kroger Marketplace, Natural Grocers and Whole Foods Market. We wanted to compare inventories, odd items and distinctive features.
We analyzed prices, too, and for that we had a simple formula. We'd take the same list of 10 common ingredients to all four stores and we'd choose the cheapest product (adjusting prices by volume when necessary to meet our desired quantity) that would fulfill that item. Let's reiterate, we chose the cheapest, not necessarily the most healthful or highest quality. If an item was on sale that day, we used the marked-down price. Of course, savvy couponing and selective sales shopping (always check newspaper inserts and websites) can certainly bring prices down.
On our list and the prices we saw:
1 pound of red delicious apples (ranged from $1.49-$2.79)
1 pound of tomatoes (99 cents-$2.99)
1 pound of russet potatoes (89 cents-$1.69)
1 bunch of cilantro (79 cents-$1.69)
1 pound of ground beef, any type ($3.99-$10.65)
1 pound of bacon ($3.99-$9.78)
1 pound of pasta ($1-$2.99)
5-ounce can of tuna, albacore ($1.67-$2.69)
15-ounce jar of mayonnaise ($1.88- $4.89)
1 dozen eggs ($2.19- $3.79)
At each store, we also identified some of the least and most expensive items our eyes happened to fall upon, as well as stores' special features.
Let's start this supermarket showdown.
THE FRESH MARKET
Pleasant Ridge Town Center, 11525 Cantrell Road, (501) 225-7700, thefreshmarket.com
Overview: Whether one wants ingredients to prepare a meal (from salmon and short ribs to Chateaubriand-cut filet mignon) or buy one already prepared (pizza, potstickers, quiche), the inviting Fresh Market has plenty of appealing options. It boasts an attractive produce section, abundant deli, knowledgeable butchers, unconventional cheeses (ginger gouda, anyone?), bulk yummies and dreamy desserts, as well as everyday essentials. Familiar brands like Hellmann's and Diet Coke mingle with organic brands and the store's own TFM (The Fresh Market) line.
Bargains: Different days can mean different deals. On the Tuesday we visited, ground chuck, normally $5.99, was on sale for $2.99 (significantly bringing the cost of our list down). Inexpensive items we spotted included LaCroix sparkling water for 69 cents a can, russet potatoes for 89 cents a pound and swirly candy Unicorn Pops starting at $1.29.
Budget-breakers: A 13.6-pound (!) partial wheel of domestic parmesan cost $190.40 -- for serious and strong cheeseheads only.
Beyond bread and milk: While The Fresh Market's main focus is food, the chain sells flowers, gifts (from candles to seashell potpourri) and custom baskets. There's no sitting area inside, but exterior tables await those who want to sample their sushi or dig into their deli fare immediately.
Unusual items: Tubs of ready-to-devour Naked Dough -- "Eat It! Don't Bake It!" -- from the Cookie Dough Cafe tempt from a refrigerated section in the back. The store's swimsuit season saltwater taffy display is the most sizable we've seen this side of Atlantic City, N.J. And, medic! A clever "Thirst Aid Kit" of nine beers is sure to cure whatever "ales" you.
List grand total: $29.30
NATURAL GROCERS
9210 N. Rodney Parham Road, (501) 312-8300, naturalgrocers.com
Overview: Out of the ashes of a greasy short-lived Chinese restaurant (the one with the giddiest name/sign ever -- Fu Xing Buffet, we hardly knew ye) rises a health-focused food business that couldn't be more different from the previous occupant. There's no fresh meat department or bakery or deli counter in simple, nice Natural Grocers, which has a small produce section. Its emphasis is on shelf-stable, refrigerated and frozen foods, as well as wellness and household products. Expect to see plenty of Amy's Kitchen, Annie's Homegrown, Evol, Alexia and Udi's products; most foods have label lingo like organic, dairy-free, gluten-free, naturally raised, grass-free, cage-free and BPA-free. Then there are the supplements -- scores of vitamins and keratin boosters and collagen generators and other FDA-unregulated supposed miracle makers. We overheard an employee restocking shelves mutter, "They have some weird names for stuff, I tell you."
Bargains: As for the cheapest items, we found 79-cent snack packs of Wholly Guacamole, 49-cent cans of LaCroix sparkling water, and 39-cent cans of Blue Sky natural sodas. Our favorite frugal find: a 99-cent pack of -- who knew? -- organic Ramen noodles.
Budget-breakers: A giant bottle of Modified Citrus Pectin costs $90.09; it could be whirred into smoothies using that $199 Breville blender.
Beyond bread and milk: (Speaking of milk, if they sold a cow version, I never saw it, but they had plenty of soy, coconut, cashew, almond, flax, rice and even pecan.) Save for a demonstration kitchen not in use when we visited, this is a basic, no-frills store. And a no-bags store. None are offered, so bring your own, buy a reusable tote or use a surplus box from their recycled stash.
Unusual items: Buffalo meat (in the form of jerky and a 10-ounce rib-eye steak for $20.79). And super-pretty produce like purple potatoes and the aptly labeled colorful bunches -- more like bouquets -- of "rainbow carrots."
List grand total: $41.35
KROGER MARKETPLACE
16105 Chenal Parkway, (501) 217-7910, kroger.com
Overview: It's Kroger -- the same one you've always shopped -- but on steroids. This super-size supermarket sells every nourishment staple and then some. It's a one-stop shop where you can buy not only meal ingredients, but utensils and pots for cooking, dishes for serving, patio furniture for sitting and an outfit for wearing. The question for Marketplace's grocery, home, kitchen, fashion and seasonal sections is not what it has, but what doesn't it have?
Bargains: Signing up for a loyalty card allows shoppers to take advantage of the lowest yellow-sticker prices (which we used to tally our shopping list) throughout the store. Among the cheapest vittles were two-for-$1 lunchbox apples and four-for-$1 limes.
Budget-breakers: The priciest stuff in the store is not at the butcher counter, but rather the bling department. There's a full-fledged Fred Meyer Jewelers right there in the front of the store selling everything from watches to a $3,999 diamond engagement sparkler.
Beyond bread and milk: It's a pub, right there in the beer-and-wine aisle. Kind of. While there are neon signs, beer taps and an employee serving as bartender, the brews -- including local Lost Forty and Diamond Bear varieties -- are for take-home, not immediate consumption.
Unusual items: In the produce section are spiky kiwano -- or horned -- melons. In the seasonal section are vivid, monochromatic garden gnomes. In the kitchen section sits every as-seen-on-TV gadget you ever almost bought at 2:14 a.m. in a sad, sleepless state, like the microwaveable Rapid Mac Cooker. It proclaims to be the "World's Fastest And Easiest Way To Cook Mac & Cheese!" as if there was a slow and complicated way.
List grand total: $18.98
WHOLE FOODS
501 Bowman Road, (501) 221-2331, wholefoodsmarket.com
Overview: The Whole Foods chain, which bills itself as "America's Healthiest Grocery Store," has gotten a whole lot of negative attention recently. Not only did the store agree to pay a $500,000 settlement for overcharging New York customers and attempt to sell 16-ounce bottles of "Asparagus Water," complete with three lousy spears, for $5.99 in California, its nickname has become "Whole Paycheck." That said, Little Rock has embraced the large and lovely location that opened last year in a former Linens N Things and emphasizes all things natural, "responsibly grown," "responsibly farmed" sustainable, free-range and nontoxic. Expect to see everything from Whole Foods' 365 brand to local products like Loblolly Creamery's ice cream and Old Mill Bread & Flour Co.'s loaves. From mouthwatering meats to unusual edibles (whole octopus, freaky fungi), it's a regular theme park for cooks. And its salad bar and prepared foods assortment (from lamb stew and cauliflower gratin to vegan black rice sushi and apricot almond chicken salad) are heroes for the hungry but uninspired.
Bargains: Chocolate drizzled "Sweet Bites" at the bakery were 99 cents, as were bagels. Ears of bicolor corn were 50 cents.
Budget-breakers: Some of the most expensive store items were in the supplements section. A bottle of 144 Kind Organics multivitamins for women cost $79.99.
Beyond bread and milk: There's not only a pizza station and a coffee bar, but there's a whole Whole Foods social scene in the front corner. An actual sit-and-stay-awhile bar, The Lucky Fox, serves beers like Lost Forty's Forest Queen and wine. There's inside and outside seating for shoppers who'd like to be snackers.
Unusual items: Whole Foods had the most vibrant array of veggies (and cute fruits -- baby pineapples! Awww!) of any store we visited. Purple sweet potatoes. Striped bell peppers. Green, purple and orange cauliflower. Even the pickiest-palated kid might be curious to try produce with that kind of palette.
List grand total: $35.23.
Style on 04/19/2016