I thought I’d seen everything in terms of a supermarket. Small Ma and Pa grocery stores that – to be honest — are disappearing. Well known chains depending on where you live: Jewel-Osco, Kroger, Publix, Winn-Dixie. Walmart, the largest grocery store in America. And those competing discount behemoths, Costco and Sam’s Club, where bulk purchases are the norm.
But I’d never seen anything like Seed to Table, a couple miles from where we’re staying. The current trend is called “farm to table,” but this operation goes even further. It isn’t just a supermarket; it’s an art museum.
The entrance puts you in the fresh produce section, which is enormous. All kinds of fruits and vegetable are artistically arranged, not just tossed in a bin. The apples form a pyramid. The corn lines up in rows with all cobs facing the same way. Bags of carrots are stacked in rows vertically and act as dividers in the vegetable section.
The bakery, next to the produce, has something for everyone. Seriously. If you want a carrot cake, for instance, there are three different sizes, just like Goldilocks’ three bears. The big one is company sized; the middle one for a family; and the little one for someone who lives alone. Edible art for everyone.
Then there is the block long cheese aisle, the block long meat aisle, and the block long fish/seafood aisle. And a wonderful array of prepared foods for those averse to cooking. It’s also a block long.
Next came the coffee bar, the wine bar, the pasta bar, and the guacamole bar, each ready to prepare the respective specialty at a moment’s notice. And did I mention the live entertainment seven nights a week?
There was also a place where parents dropped off their children to play instead of riding in the grocery cart and begging. Finally, near the checkouts I found — believe it or not — pumpkin pie. Who has pumpkin pie in March?
Because we’d gone to the House of Omelets for breakfast first, we bought only half a pumpkin pie and a small package of brie cheese. Had we come hungry our bill would have been much, much more.
Which suggests we need a return visit when we’re hungry, because there were also plenty of free food samples to enjoy.
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