F&E brings back the canvas bag design contest! Winning design will go on all of their canvas bags and be available at every store. And YOU get free groceries for a year!
No, you cannot use the Temple's fresco for this. ;-D
Showing posts with label store culture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label store culture. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Bag It: Part 2
F&E brings back the canvas bag design contest! Winning design will go on all of their canvas bags and be available at every store. And YOU get free groceries for a year!
No, you cannot use the Temple's fresco for this. ;-D
Thursday, April 1, 2010
"Eat Well" Party
Well, it wasn't supposed to be a raging party. But the wine was flowing and somebody broke a vase at the end, so I guess the blogger preview of F&E new, healthy "EatWell" line was indeed a certified party. :)
This is also the first time all three of the Temple's priestesses were together in the same room! So, I'm starting this post and Sister Annette and Sister Amy will chime in as we go along.
'N: Indeed it was. All that was missing were the Cava and Malbec, but they may have taken the party to a whole ‘nother level. As it was, the wines that were offered were delicious, especially the bubbly. F&E really knows how to choose tasty, affordable wines. They certainly give Trader Joe’s a run for the money in that department.
We were there with many Los Angeles bloggers and tweeps to sample the new line of grab-and-go "nutritionally balanced meal options" which will be in store April 7.
'N: The launch will consist of 17 new items with a second phase coming soon after. The Priestesses all hope that dessert will be part of the second phase.
Many of the offerings are chicken and fish based meals with a good selection of vegetarian meals thrown in that this meat-eater would not lift her nose at.
Yep. Healthy, tasty meals that's FRESH! No frozen or artificial here, kids.
'N: But you *can* freeze the meals. Very important for those of us who grab prepared meals for office lunches. The packaging includes information on re-heating from frozen. They’ve thought of everything!
EatWell products have nutritional postings right in the front of how many calories, how much fat and saturated fat, and sodium per serving are in them. AND one serving here is exactly what it means--that container you're holding is one serving and therefore the nutritional value applies to all that you're about to eat.
The cool part? Each of these EatWell meals contains 25% or less of your daily caloric intake (based on a 2,000 calorie diet). So if you eat 4 of these in one day, you'll be right at the target. Pretty neat concept.
But what wins everyone over is the fact that one of these packages count as one serving. There is no calculating of how many serving is in a box and how many calories do they add up to. Throw out your calculator there, peeps.
So the team had the foods out for us to try. Not all 17 of the products, but the safe choices.
Farmer's Market Salad with Lemon Hummus dressing
O: I didn't try this one.
'N: Me neither, I opted for the Spicy Tuna.
Veggie wrap with red pepper hummus
O: I didn't try this one either. With my braces, I'm not about to bite into crunch veggies. But I adore the red pepper hummus so this can't possibly fail me.
'N: This is one of purely vegetarian offerings that I would eat on a regular basis. “Crisp cucumbers, bell peppers, carrots, and spring mix lettuce with red pepper hummus wrapped in a sun-dried tomato tortilla” – Quite tasty and filling. And for $2.99 you can get some of those pesky fruit and vegetable servings out of the way and enjoy it.
Spicy Tuna "Sushi Box" (aka Chirashi)
O: The heat is going to be too much for those who don't eat spicy at all. But those who already love spicy tuna sushi, the heat is perfect here. Just enough to kick you in the mouth but not so much you weep. With the brown rice and edamame, it's a complete meal. This would be the one I'd pick for lunch all the time. The Sisters agreed.
'N: and went back for seconds!
Turkey chili
O: Annette and I agreed this lacks some cumin and could use more chili powder. I mean, we're not looking for spicy heat, but spices as flavors.
What about some cheese or sour cream? Annette actually asked for some but there weren't any on hand. Chef Katie also pointed out, that the extra fixings would put the serving over 25% requirement. They did want us to taste the meals the way they actually will be sold. So...remember to pick up some cheese and sour cream on your own there, people.
'N:And as one mom blogger pointed out, you can always add heat, but you can’t take it away. This chili is a good base. You can have it bland for the kids and kick it up a notch at home if you like your chili to taste like it has some chili in it :)
Arroz Con Pollo
O: Again, need more cumin and spices. The texture is great, just need some more flavors.
Bruschetta Chicken
O: Something is missing and it ain't the salt. Again, we think it needs a bit more herbage in the sauce.
Teriyaki salmon, brown rice, and veggies
O: The salmon was cooked perfectly and the sauce is just right. Another go-to lunch item right here.
We had great food and great conversation with other bloggers and tweeps. A briefing from John Burry and the team, as he called in the Tupperware speech in the middle of dinner, and a casual Q&A with the bloggers.
Chef Katie revealed she likes the Mojito Shrimps, not served today but will be in the stores. On that note we also found that the shrimps came from sustainable farms in Asia that meet F&E/Tesco's standards. (Thailand shrimps! Yes, I am supporting my Motherland!)
ETA: A fellow blogger Amy also discussed the question she posed about the source of F&E seafood.
I'd ask about some EatWell dessert. I mean, you can have healthy stuff that'd fit in the 25% requirment, right? Fruit crumbles? Angel Food Cake? There's gotta be SOMETHING! They said they'd think about it.
Then we were off touring the HQ. We got to sneak a peek at products in development and packaging design, as well as the staff's Halloween party snapshots and, for you geeks like me, the tardis in CEO Tim Mason's office.
John also mentions that they're developing the EatWell for kids. Goodness, I think, is what they'll be called. Kids-friendly healthy, wholesome food with hidden veggies here and there i.e. carrots and spinach blended into the spaghetti sauce. The mom bloggers are excited about that one. Some of us with picky eating adults in the household also rejoiced. ;-)
We all went home with a gift bag each: the canvas 6-bottle-of-wine bag with a bottle of their new Tempranillo Spanish red, a recycled paper note pad, a $25 gift card, and a $5-off-$20-purchase coupon.
Oh, how we have missed you so, $5-off$20 coupons!
Over all, it was a great event for us to try out the new products. Once again, proven that they do listen to their customers here.
Here's the slide show:
Now, more coverage of the event:
This is also the first time all three of the Temple's priestesses were together in the same room! So, I'm starting this post and Sister Annette and Sister Amy will chime in as we go along.
'N: Indeed it was. All that was missing were the Cava and Malbec, but they may have taken the party to a whole ‘nother level. As it was, the wines that were offered were delicious, especially the bubbly. F&E really knows how to choose tasty, affordable wines. They certainly give Trader Joe’s a run for the money in that department.
We were there with many Los Angeles bloggers and tweeps to sample the new line of grab-and-go "nutritionally balanced meal options" which will be in store April 7.
'N: The launch will consist of 17 new items with a second phase coming soon after. The Priestesses all hope that dessert will be part of the second phase.
Many of the offerings are chicken and fish based meals with a good selection of vegetarian meals thrown in that this meat-eater would not lift her nose at.
Yep. Healthy, tasty meals that's FRESH! No frozen or artificial here, kids.
'N: But you *can* freeze the meals. Very important for those of us who grab prepared meals for office lunches. The packaging includes information on re-heating from frozen. They’ve thought of everything!
EatWell products have nutritional postings right in the front of how many calories, how much fat and saturated fat, and sodium per serving are in them. AND one serving here is exactly what it means--that container you're holding is one serving and therefore the nutritional value applies to all that you're about to eat.
The cool part? Each of these EatWell meals contains 25% or less of your daily caloric intake (based on a 2,000 calorie diet). So if you eat 4 of these in one day, you'll be right at the target. Pretty neat concept.
But what wins everyone over is the fact that one of these packages count as one serving. There is no calculating of how many serving is in a box and how many calories do they add up to. Throw out your calculator there, peeps.
So the team had the foods out for us to try. Not all 17 of the products, but the safe choices.
Farmer's Market Salad with Lemon Hummus dressing
O: I didn't try this one.
'N: Me neither, I opted for the Spicy Tuna.
Veggie wrap with red pepper hummus
O: I didn't try this one either. With my braces, I'm not about to bite into crunch veggies. But I adore the red pepper hummus so this can't possibly fail me.
'N: This is one of purely vegetarian offerings that I would eat on a regular basis. “Crisp cucumbers, bell peppers, carrots, and spring mix lettuce with red pepper hummus wrapped in a sun-dried tomato tortilla” – Quite tasty and filling. And for $2.99 you can get some of those pesky fruit and vegetable servings out of the way and enjoy it.
Spicy Tuna "Sushi Box" (aka Chirashi)
O: The heat is going to be too much for those who don't eat spicy at all. But those who already love spicy tuna sushi, the heat is perfect here. Just enough to kick you in the mouth but not so much you weep. With the brown rice and edamame, it's a complete meal. This would be the one I'd pick for lunch all the time. The Sisters agreed.
'N: and went back for seconds!
Turkey chili
O: Annette and I agreed this lacks some cumin and could use more chili powder. I mean, we're not looking for spicy heat, but spices as flavors.
What about some cheese or sour cream? Annette actually asked for some but there weren't any on hand. Chef Katie also pointed out, that the extra fixings would put the serving over 25% requirement. They did want us to taste the meals the way they actually will be sold. So...remember to pick up some cheese and sour cream on your own there, people.
'N:And as one mom blogger pointed out, you can always add heat, but you can’t take it away. This chili is a good base. You can have it bland for the kids and kick it up a notch at home if you like your chili to taste like it has some chili in it :)
Arroz Con Pollo
O: Again, need more cumin and spices. The texture is great, just need some more flavors.
Bruschetta Chicken
O: Something is missing and it ain't the salt. Again, we think it needs a bit more herbage in the sauce.
Teriyaki salmon, brown rice, and veggies
O: The salmon was cooked perfectly and the sauce is just right. Another go-to lunch item right here.
We had great food and great conversation with other bloggers and tweeps. A briefing from John Burry and the team, as he called in the Tupperware speech in the middle of dinner, and a casual Q&A with the bloggers.
Chef Katie revealed she likes the Mojito Shrimps, not served today but will be in the stores. On that note we also found that the shrimps came from sustainable farms in Asia that meet F&E/Tesco's standards. (Thailand shrimps! Yes, I am supporting my Motherland!)
ETA: A fellow blogger Amy also discussed the question she posed about the source of F&E seafood.
I'd ask about some EatWell dessert. I mean, you can have healthy stuff that'd fit in the 25% requirment, right? Fruit crumbles? Angel Food Cake? There's gotta be SOMETHING! They said they'd think about it.
Then we were off touring the HQ. We got to sneak a peek at products in development and packaging design, as well as the staff's Halloween party snapshots and, for you geeks like me, the tardis in CEO Tim Mason's office.
John also mentions that they're developing the EatWell for kids. Goodness, I think, is what they'll be called. Kids-friendly healthy, wholesome food with hidden veggies here and there i.e. carrots and spinach blended into the spaghetti sauce. The mom bloggers are excited about that one. Some of us with picky eating adults in the household also rejoiced. ;-)
We all went home with a gift bag each: the canvas 6-bottle-of-wine bag with a bottle of their new Tempranillo Spanish red, a recycled paper note pad, a $25 gift card, and a $5-off-$20-purchase coupon.
Oh, how we have missed you so, $5-off$20 coupons!
Over all, it was a great event for us to try out the new products. Once again, proven that they do listen to their customers here.
Here's the slide show:
Now, more coverage of the event:
- NewlyWife
- SueBob's Snackish
- Catalina's Greenery in Mommyhood
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Whoops...
I hope my comment on my Spring Street F&E running out of Guinness the day before St. Patty's didn't get the store in trouble.
I popped in today and in the middle of the beer & wine aisle were cases and cases of Guinness on sale.
Oops.
I popped in today and in the middle of the beer & wine aisle were cases and cases of Guinness on sale.
Oops.
Monday, March 15, 2010
No Guinness for you
Naturally, I ran into F&E today to pick up all of my St. Patrick's Day party need: components for the Guinness beef stew and for Guinness Chocolate Cake. I rounded the corner to get the Guinness and ...
...the shelf was empty.
At $4.99, rightfully so, I thought. Either way, I grabbed a 6-pack of Hornsby Hard Cider and went to check out.
F&E team member came to check my ID.
"How dare you run out of Guinness!" I jokingly exasperated.
"Um. That's my fault," he said.
"Are you guys going to restock tomorrow?"
"We're out out."
"?"
"We thought we ordered enough, but they were selling like crazy."
"Well, at this price, I'm not surprised."
"And I also bought a lot of it. I'm REALLY sorry."
I mean, if you ask someone at some other stores, they'd probably either don't know why they're out or blame somebody for it.
Not at my F&E.
Not only staff actually admit that they've understocked a popular seasonal product, but they confessed to out-buying your beer. LOL.
...the shelf was empty.
At $4.99, rightfully so, I thought. Either way, I grabbed a 6-pack of Hornsby Hard Cider and went to check out.
F&E team member came to check my ID.
"How dare you run out of Guinness!" I jokingly exasperated.
"Um. That's my fault," he said.
"Are you guys going to restock tomorrow?"
"We're out out."
"?"
"We thought we ordered enough, but they were selling like crazy."
"Well, at this price, I'm not surprised."
"And I also bought a lot of it. I'm REALLY sorry."
I mean, if you ask someone at some other stores, they'd probably either don't know why they're out or blame somebody for it.
Not at my F&E.
Not only staff actually admit that they've understocked a popular seasonal product, but they confessed to out-buying your beer. LOL.
Monday, February 1, 2010
F&E listens: Gluten-Free list
Last week F&E announced that they are now marking their gluten-free products better so folks can find them. Their gluten-free intro says:
You can download the list as well so you know before you shop.
On that same note, an F&E rep has emailed me after reading about my little vegetarian rant that to assure me that F&E has heard the message loud and clear. Obviously, I wasn't the first one to inquire about their vegetarian/vegan selection. F&E has been receiving a lot of feedback on the grab-and-go foods even before the Temple chimed in.
Maybe it's the New Year Resolutioners looking for healthy alternatives. (Wait until they get to the rightfully-so-back-by-popular-demand F&E gourmet cupcakes. Their diet is sooo over! Muwahahah!). Maybe it's those like me who saw Food Inc. and/or read Fast Food Nation or Omnivore's Dilemma recently and decided to change their diet to align with their ethics. (Gosh knows I'm trying.) Maybe it's just people becoming more conscious of what they eat altogether.
But hey, all of us spoke up. I'm just here to let you know that F&E heard ya. Like the Gluten-Free labeling, they are not ignoring our feedbacks. It just takes a while to get the ball rolling.
One day, part-time and full-time vegetarians and vegan brothers and sisters, we will have our moment too. :)
Now, back to those cupcakes...
We've received a lot of questions about which of our products are gluten-free, so we created a simple way to identify them. Just look for this icon next to the notable gluten-free products in our stores. We also have hundreds of other products naturally made without gluten-containing ingredients.
You can download the list as well so you know before you shop.
On that same note, an F&E rep has emailed me after reading about my little vegetarian rant that to assure me that F&E has heard the message loud and clear. Obviously, I wasn't the first one to inquire about their vegetarian/vegan selection. F&E has been receiving a lot of feedback on the grab-and-go foods even before the Temple chimed in.
Maybe it's the New Year Resolutioners looking for healthy alternatives. (Wait until they get to the rightfully-so-back-by-popular-demand F&E gourmet cupcakes. Their diet is sooo over! Muwahahah!). Maybe it's those like me who saw Food Inc. and/or read Fast Food Nation or Omnivore's Dilemma recently and decided to change their diet to align with their ethics. (Gosh knows I'm trying.) Maybe it's just people becoming more conscious of what they eat altogether.
But hey, all of us spoke up. I'm just here to let you know that F&E heard ya. Like the Gluten-Free labeling, they are not ignoring our feedbacks. It just takes a while to get the ball rolling.
One day, part-time and full-time vegetarians and vegan brothers and sisters, we will have our moment too. :)
Now, back to those cupcakes...
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Vegetarian Dilemma
One of my goals this year is to go meatless and mostly eggless on Tuesdays. (You can follow that particular adventure here.)
I know a lot of people are trying to do the same thing for health and/or environmental purposes like folks at Meatless Monday.
But mine is a bit of a spiritual and religious journey.
I'm doing it in memory of my mom who gave up beef a long time ago for religious reason. We're Buddhist, by the way. When I tried the meatless Tuesday, essentially not taking any lives on the day of my birth, back in high school and college, she was supportive of it. Of course, being so young and back in the days when tofu/soy products weren't all that available, I ended up eating mainly cheese and fries on those days so I stopped the practice before I have a heart attack.
Now that I have the motivation and the mean, I'm back on the weekly meatless wagon.
So, knowing that Fresh & Easy has a good selection of what I called "non-meat meat", I headed to the store to plan out my first Veggie/Meatless Tuesday.
First of, there are a whole bunch of soy "meat" variety and tofu to choose from. A lot of the marinaded "meat" you can just heat up and eat. Super easy. Actually, I tried one of the "chicken" things once and didn't have a good experience. So, I grabbed something a little more familiar, Wildwood Organics teriyaki sproutofu, a baked, solid tofu. Thai people use similar items in our Pad Thai and other vegetarian dishes.
Once that was picked up, the menu fell into place. Sproutofu dipped in the yummy F&E Thai Peanut Sauce (got a Heavenly review from this Thai) with a side of F&E heat-and-eat jasmine rice (perfect lunch portion for me) and organic vine-ripened tomatoes I got from farmer's market.
That sounded like a lot of work for lunch. So, I thought I'd take a look in the grab-and-go section to see what's what.
It was more of what's not.
To my surprise, 3 items in the grab-and-go section were vegetarian: the samosas, breakfast burritos, and the egg rolls. Absolutely nothing in the family size was vegetarian.
(Note: I'm sure there is some vegetarian soups on the shelf but I didn't get a good look at them. I know that I can't finish the tub of soup at work so I skipped them based on practicality.)
That disappointment turned into curiosity. So I went to the front of the store to check the pre-packed salads and sandwiches. Well, there's the pesto and mozzarella salad (which I love), the yogurt stuff, and maybe one other thing. That was it.
Final quick glance at frozen entrees perhaps? Aside from mac and cheese, nada.
Interesting, isn't it? As a meat eater, I never have to think of these things. Now that I'm a part-time vegetarian, I realize there isn't much I could grab right out of F&E to my lunch room that is nutritious and satisfying.
I mean, as a vegetarian, to have a satisfying and nutritious lunch from F&E, I have to assemble my lunch with different components. (And yes, I realize I could've picked up some frozen veggies to go with my lunch as well, but that's just ANOTHER component.)
As a meat eater, I can waltz in there and out the door as soon as I could decide what I want to eat. So. Much. Yumminess!
Now, I'm also going egg-less on these Tuesdays. And that got me thinking of the vegan diet.
If a vegetarian already has problems finding something to eat here, can you imagine a vegan trying to find some lunch at F&E?
I have noticed F&E has been very good with bringing in healthy products for other dietary need. I sent my friend with Celiac over to pick up the AFFORDABLE gluten-free food like the pasta, pretzels and dark chocolate pudding which saves him money and a trip across town to Whole Foods. Another friend who is allergic to dairy also appreciate the soy yogurt, milk, and dessert selection.
Maybe it's time to start treating our vegetarian and vegan friends right as well.
So, let us pray, my fellow F&E Worshipers, for the herbivores--even the part time one like me--that we would someday have the convenient, delicious and nutritious lunch like our omnivore brothers and sisters currently enjoy.
In Chef Mike we trust. Amen.
ETA - 01/20/10: Forgive me for I have sinned. I had Trader Joe's frozen Paneer Masala with spinach basmati rice last night. And it was delicious. 2 more of the frozen vegetarian entrees (one Indian, one Thai) await more taste tests.
I know a lot of people are trying to do the same thing for health and/or environmental purposes like folks at Meatless Monday.
But mine is a bit of a spiritual and religious journey.
I'm doing it in memory of my mom who gave up beef a long time ago for religious reason. We're Buddhist, by the way. When I tried the meatless Tuesday, essentially not taking any lives on the day of my birth, back in high school and college, she was supportive of it. Of course, being so young and back in the days when tofu/soy products weren't all that available, I ended up eating mainly cheese and fries on those days so I stopped the practice before I have a heart attack.
Now that I have the motivation and the mean, I'm back on the weekly meatless wagon.
So, knowing that Fresh & Easy has a good selection of what I called "non-meat meat", I headed to the store to plan out my first Veggie/Meatless Tuesday.
First of, there are a whole bunch of soy "meat" variety and tofu to choose from. A lot of the marinaded "meat" you can just heat up and eat. Super easy. Actually, I tried one of the "chicken" things once and didn't have a good experience. So, I grabbed something a little more familiar, Wildwood Organics teriyaki sproutofu, a baked, solid tofu. Thai people use similar items in our Pad Thai and other vegetarian dishes.
Once that was picked up, the menu fell into place. Sproutofu dipped in the yummy F&E Thai Peanut Sauce (got a Heavenly review from this Thai) with a side of F&E heat-and-eat jasmine rice (perfect lunch portion for me) and organic vine-ripened tomatoes I got from farmer's market.
That sounded like a lot of work for lunch. So, I thought I'd take a look in the grab-and-go section to see what's what.
It was more of what's not.
To my surprise, 3 items in the grab-and-go section were vegetarian: the samosas, breakfast burritos, and the egg rolls. Absolutely nothing in the family size was vegetarian.
(Note: I'm sure there is some vegetarian soups on the shelf but I didn't get a good look at them. I know that I can't finish the tub of soup at work so I skipped them based on practicality.)
That disappointment turned into curiosity. So I went to the front of the store to check the pre-packed salads and sandwiches. Well, there's the pesto and mozzarella salad (which I love), the yogurt stuff, and maybe one other thing. That was it.
Final quick glance at frozen entrees perhaps? Aside from mac and cheese, nada.
Interesting, isn't it? As a meat eater, I never have to think of these things. Now that I'm a part-time vegetarian, I realize there isn't much I could grab right out of F&E to my lunch room that is nutritious and satisfying.
I mean, as a vegetarian, to have a satisfying and nutritious lunch from F&E, I have to assemble my lunch with different components. (And yes, I realize I could've picked up some frozen veggies to go with my lunch as well, but that's just ANOTHER component.)
As a meat eater, I can waltz in there and out the door as soon as I could decide what I want to eat. So. Much. Yumminess!
Now, I'm also going egg-less on these Tuesdays. And that got me thinking of the vegan diet.
If a vegetarian already has problems finding something to eat here, can you imagine a vegan trying to find some lunch at F&E?
I have noticed F&E has been very good with bringing in healthy products for other dietary need. I sent my friend with Celiac over to pick up the AFFORDABLE gluten-free food like the pasta, pretzels and dark chocolate pudding which saves him money and a trip across town to Whole Foods. Another friend who is allergic to dairy also appreciate the soy yogurt, milk, and dessert selection.
Maybe it's time to start treating our vegetarian and vegan friends right as well.
So, let us pray, my fellow F&E Worshipers, for the herbivores--even the part time one like me--that we would someday have the convenient, delicious and nutritious lunch like our omnivore brothers and sisters currently enjoy.
In Chef Mike we trust. Amen.
ETA - 01/20/10: Forgive me for I have sinned. I had Trader Joe's frozen Paneer Masala with spinach basmati rice last night. And it was delicious. 2 more of the frozen vegetarian entrees (one Indian, one Thai) await more taste tests.
Monday, October 26, 2009
I want you back
I apologize to the congregation of my long absence. Thrill the World has finally come to a close, officially, although I have to lead another mini team of zombies to dance at Halloween on Pine once more before we can call the whole thing quit.
The big team, over 100 zombies, are going to perform at the Clippers half-time show on the same night. I'm sticking with my hometown(ish) because I'm cool like that. Besides, I just made some money for Inner-City Arts for not being up at Staples Center. So yey, me.
Anyway. I have wanted to blog about F&E new moves since that visit to the Holy Land.
Things were taken off the shelves to be replaced with something else to see how they would go, Simon had said. Some of us hardcore fans are looking around the store, hoping that some day our favorite stuff would return to the shelves.
For me, I miss the Belgian Chocolate Mousse like it's nobody's business. Sure, it'll take me 2 days to finish just that little cup of heaven--so rich!--but I do love my mousse. From that same dessert case, I also miss the F&E brand cupcakes. I'm not fond of this new bakery they're getting their stuff from. So much frosting!
I also miss getting the whole chicken, but I also understand why that went off the shelf.
Now, let me open the floor to you guys. What are you missing at your F&E since store reorganization?
The big team, over 100 zombies, are going to perform at the Clippers half-time show on the same night. I'm sticking with my hometown(ish) because I'm cool like that. Besides, I just made some money for Inner-City Arts for not being up at Staples Center. So yey, me.
Anyway. I have wanted to blog about F&E new moves since that visit to the Holy Land.
Things were taken off the shelves to be replaced with something else to see how they would go, Simon had said. Some of us hardcore fans are looking around the store, hoping that some day our favorite stuff would return to the shelves.
For me, I miss the Belgian Chocolate Mousse like it's nobody's business. Sure, it'll take me 2 days to finish just that little cup of heaven--so rich!--but I do love my mousse. From that same dessert case, I also miss the F&E brand cupcakes. I'm not fond of this new bakery they're getting their stuff from. So much frosting!
I also miss getting the whole chicken, but I also understand why that went off the shelf.
Now, let me open the floor to you guys. What are you missing at your F&E since store reorganization?
Monday, June 29, 2009
The Horror...
The clutters.
THE. CLUTTERS!
A follow up from last post about the change I noticed in my F&E store: taller shelves, more brand names, more family sized items.
Front of the store is packed full of stuff. The bins are back in the middle of the produce aisle. To the greatest of my horror?
Wire basket displays in the middle of the last open space left in the store, between the toiletries and medicines along the wall and the rest of the shelves.
Even Brandon, who actually would gladly run into an F&E for me (and not the other places) because he LOVES the uncluttered spaces and self check-out, uttered, "What the...?"
Out of the respect of the store's request not to take photos, I didn't take any. I was too horrified.
We did walk out with more than what we went in for, as always. But the cluttered shop weighs heavily on our minds.
The self check-out really is the last thing left of the store I worship?
(Well, that and Belgian Chocolate Mousse.)
I tried to justify with the fact that UK items are coming to the store, that more wine selection are coming to the store...oooh, and they have turbinado sugar now...
But is that enough?
My faith is being tested.
You might still be fresh, my dearest store. But you ain't makin' it easy for me.
Verdict: Sale Item Displays Out In the Middle of Aisles:Hell. Heavenly
ETA July 20: Quick bargain bin clutter update: I ran into the Spring Street store on Saturday afternoon to fetch the banana cream pie and I noticed the bargain bins in the produce sections were gone. I haven't gone through the entire store but that alone was a massive improvement. Thank you for listening, F&E!
THE. CLUTTERS!
A follow up from last post about the change I noticed in my F&E store: taller shelves, more brand names, more family sized items.
Front of the store is packed full of stuff. The bins are back in the middle of the produce aisle. To the greatest of my horror?
Wire basket displays in the middle of the last open space left in the store, between the toiletries and medicines along the wall and the rest of the shelves.
Even Brandon, who actually would gladly run into an F&E for me (and not the other places) because he LOVES the uncluttered spaces and self check-out, uttered, "What the...?"
Out of the respect of the store's request not to take photos, I didn't take any. I was too horrified.
We did walk out with more than what we went in for, as always. But the cluttered shop weighs heavily on our minds.
The self check-out really is the last thing left of the store I worship?
(Well, that and Belgian Chocolate Mousse.)
I tried to justify with the fact that UK items are coming to the store, that more wine selection are coming to the store...oooh, and they have turbinado sugar now...
But is that enough?
My faith is being tested.
You might still be fresh, my dearest store. But you ain't makin' it easy for me.
Verdict: Sale Item Displays Out In the Middle of Aisles:
ETA July 20: Quick bargain bin clutter update: I ran into the Spring Street store on Saturday afternoon to fetch the banana cream pie and I noticed the bargain bins in the produce sections were gone. I haven't gone through the entire store but that alone was a massive improvement. Thank you for listening, F&E!
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Ch-ch-ch-Change
Friends, I have braces.
Yep. This will surely affect the way I eat and therefore what I will cook and what I will buy stuff. Now that I can't do anything crunchy, (Bye, kettle chips!) chewy (bye, trail mixes!), or super meaty (bye rib eye steak...sniffle...sniffle...).
Aside: Well, I can still have meat if I cook the hell out of it in a braise. And in burger form. And in not-too-crispy bacon. Oh...but the crispy bacon!! *sigh*
Since I had the separators in to clear the way for the braces almost a month ago, I pretty much stopped cooking and haven't really gone to buy any groceries. Yesterday's trip was first major restocking in over a month.
Naturally, we went there before dinner and went a little bit crazy and walked out with $100+ worth. 3 canvas bags full of stuff.
We are trying a few new-to-us things from F&E which I will eventually report on: shortbread (a la Walker's), frozen turkey meatball, roasted garlic pasta sauce, teriyaki marinated firm tofu and Thai style firm tofu, Tofu burgers, refrigerated peach in syrup (surprisingly a product of Thailand. I didn't know *WE* grow peaches!?!) and a cheesecake with fruit topping I am taking to a potluck tonight.
The tofu is easy for me to chew. Once I make a big pot of rice, I can reheat and eat those for lunch all week. Yey, me.
The biggest change of all wasn't just my shopping list. But the store itself.
There were more sales stuff out by the entrance. Kraft Mac & Cheese anyone? Seriously. ANYONE?
I don't like how the sale stuff are all up in the entrance now, but it's much better than stuff in the middle of the produce aisle like how I ran into those watermelons last time.
The hummus, dips, and pasta salads are moved to where the bargain bin used to be. They were replaced by the refrigerated fruit-in-syrup stuff. The bargain bin goes over to the butter/sour cream section. This arrangement threw me off for a bit.
"Why were all these hummus and pasta salads going in the bargain bin???" LOL.
Then, I rounded the corner and looked up at the huge display of the new F&E's own Mother's Joy breakfast cereals. I mean, TOWERING by F&E standard.
- F&E Flickr
Actually, I was sent some of Mother's Joy cereals to taste with a list of new cereals and their prices. We gave the Corn Flakes to my friend Olaina and kept the Cocoa Crisp Rice and Magic Shapes.
Always a skeptic about generic brand, especially when it comes to cereals because I've heard they could taste like, well, nothing, I had Brandon tested the Magic Shapes since I can't do crunchy any more.
"So, how's your F&E brand Lucky Charms?"
"Tasted like Lucky Charms."
I gotta say the same with the Cocoa Crisp Rice. Given that I soaked it thoroughly in milk, it more resembles cocoa rice mush, but it tastes, well, just like Cocoa Rice Crispies. Seriously, I doubt I could tell the difference in a blind test.
According to my local Vons/Safeway online shopping, national brand is $3.49 for 12 oz. of Corn Flakes, F&E is $0.98; Lucky Charms $1.99 v.s. Magic Shapes $1.58; and regular Rice Crispies $3.49 v.s. Crispy Rice $1.58.
Not too bad on the pricing there, peeps.
Now behind the tall display, the shelves in the entire breakfast/chips & cracker aisle were also taller.
Holy high shelf, Batman!
The shelving which used to be just a little taller than me (I'm 5 foot flat) now seem a foot taller than it used to be, at least. Still, not quite as tall as the regular stores.
I guess it took me by surprise a little bit. But for the fact that I can still reach stuff off the top shelf, I am good with that. I guess instinctively that was why I was drawn to F&E in the first place.
You know how many times I have to abandon buying something because I can't reach it, or risking my life actually climbing the damn shelf like a 5 year-old in search for a cookie jar? It sucks to have ask someone who's not your husband to reach the top shelf for you, I tell ya.
I definitely see more name brands on the shelves than before. But as long as there are F&E stuff available where it counts, I really don't mind the new addition.
Just one request, guys. Don't add TOO MUCH stuff to the store.
Why many of love you is because of your streamline, uncluttered stores...which, sadly, seems to slowly going away now. We love that we don't have to go through a dozen brands of the same damn thing...which we now have to go through a few more brands that we are used to.
If you turn into just another cluttered, overstocked grocery store, you are going to lose the appeal that is worth me driving 3 miles for. I could easily just walk around the corner to Vons if I want a cluttered, overstocked grocery store.
I expect you to change as you grow, F&E. But I don't expect you to change into a small version of the stores I didn't like in the first place.
So, please don't let the self check-out be the only thing left to love about the store.
Yep. This will surely affect the way I eat and therefore what I will cook and what I will buy stuff. Now that I can't do anything crunchy, (Bye, kettle chips!) chewy (bye, trail mixes!), or super meaty (bye rib eye steak...sniffle...sniffle...).
Aside: Well, I can still have meat if I cook the hell out of it in a braise. And in burger form. And in not-too-crispy bacon. Oh...but the crispy bacon!! *sigh*
Since I had the separators in to clear the way for the braces almost a month ago, I pretty much stopped cooking and haven't really gone to buy any groceries. Yesterday's trip was first major restocking in over a month.
Naturally, we went there before dinner and went a little bit crazy and walked out with $100+ worth. 3 canvas bags full of stuff.
We are trying a few new-to-us things from F&E which I will eventually report on: shortbread (a la Walker's), frozen turkey meatball, roasted garlic pasta sauce, teriyaki marinated firm tofu and Thai style firm tofu, Tofu burgers, refrigerated peach in syrup (surprisingly a product of Thailand. I didn't know *WE* grow peaches!?!) and a cheesecake with fruit topping I am taking to a potluck tonight.
The tofu is easy for me to chew. Once I make a big pot of rice, I can reheat and eat those for lunch all week. Yey, me.
The biggest change of all wasn't just my shopping list. But the store itself.
There were more sales stuff out by the entrance. Kraft Mac & Cheese anyone? Seriously. ANYONE?
I don't like how the sale stuff are all up in the entrance now, but it's much better than stuff in the middle of the produce aisle like how I ran into those watermelons last time.
The hummus, dips, and pasta salads are moved to where the bargain bin used to be. They were replaced by the refrigerated fruit-in-syrup stuff. The bargain bin goes over to the butter/sour cream section. This arrangement threw me off for a bit.
"Why were all these hummus and pasta salads going in the bargain bin???" LOL.
Then, I rounded the corner and looked up at the huge display of the new F&E's own Mother's Joy breakfast cereals. I mean, TOWERING by F&E standard.
- F&E Flickr
Actually, I was sent some of Mother's Joy cereals to taste with a list of new cereals and their prices. We gave the Corn Flakes to my friend Olaina and kept the Cocoa Crisp Rice and Magic Shapes.
Always a skeptic about generic brand, especially when it comes to cereals because I've heard they could taste like, well, nothing, I had Brandon tested the Magic Shapes since I can't do crunchy any more.
"So, how's your F&E brand Lucky Charms?"
"Tasted like Lucky Charms."
I gotta say the same with the Cocoa Crisp Rice. Given that I soaked it thoroughly in milk, it more resembles cocoa rice mush, but it tastes, well, just like Cocoa Rice Crispies. Seriously, I doubt I could tell the difference in a blind test.
According to my local Vons/Safeway online shopping, national brand is $3.49 for 12 oz. of Corn Flakes, F&E is $0.98; Lucky Charms $1.99 v.s. Magic Shapes $1.58; and regular Rice Crispies $3.49 v.s. Crispy Rice $1.58.
Not too bad on the pricing there, peeps.
Now behind the tall display, the shelves in the entire breakfast/chips & cracker aisle were also taller.
Holy high shelf, Batman!
The shelving which used to be just a little taller than me (I'm 5 foot flat) now seem a foot taller than it used to be, at least. Still, not quite as tall as the regular stores.
I guess it took me by surprise a little bit. But for the fact that I can still reach stuff off the top shelf, I am good with that. I guess instinctively that was why I was drawn to F&E in the first place.
You know how many times I have to abandon buying something because I can't reach it, or risking my life actually climbing the damn shelf like a 5 year-old in search for a cookie jar? It sucks to have ask someone who's not your husband to reach the top shelf for you, I tell ya.
I definitely see more name brands on the shelves than before. But as long as there are F&E stuff available where it counts, I really don't mind the new addition.
Just one request, guys. Don't add TOO MUCH stuff to the store.
Why many of love you is because of your streamline, uncluttered stores...which, sadly, seems to slowly going away now. We love that we don't have to go through a dozen brands of the same damn thing...which we now have to go through a few more brands that we are used to.
If you turn into just another cluttered, overstocked grocery store, you are going to lose the appeal that is worth me driving 3 miles for. I could easily just walk around the corner to Vons if I want a cluttered, overstocked grocery store.
I expect you to change as you grow, F&E. But I don't expect you to change into a small version of the stores I didn't like in the first place.
So, please don't let the self check-out be the only thing left to love about the store.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
New stores near you?
Now, you can track and see when the new F&E stores are coming your way.
Hey, when is that rumored Cypress store coming?
Also, on Earth Day (that's next Wednesday, April 22) stop by F&E and get a free canvas bag with $10 purchase. Plus buy a bottle of ONEHOPE Wine, 50% of the profits will be donated to the nonprofit organization American Forests – so for every bottle of ONEHOPE Wine sold a tree will be planted in an area recently devastated by wildfires.
You too can save the world. :)
Hey, when is that rumored Cypress store coming?
Also, on Earth Day (that's next Wednesday, April 22) stop by F&E and get a free canvas bag with $10 purchase. Plus buy a bottle of ONEHOPE Wine, 50% of the profits will be donated to the nonprofit organization American Forests – so for every bottle of ONEHOPE Wine sold a tree will be planted in an area recently devastated by wildfires.
You too can save the world. :)
Sunday, April 12, 2009
F&E Review: Experimenting with Grab-And-Go
I've been stocking up on a variety of grab-and-go entrees from F&E as they make perfect lunch to take to the office. Some were hits, and some miss the mark by miles. So here are my verdicts.
Chicken Tikka Masala with Basmati Rice is still the winner so far.
Chicken Parmigiana with Fettuccine comes in close second. Can't fault anyone for the parmigiana not being crispy. I mean, it's been sitting on top of sauce and noodles. However, the flavor and the tenderness of the chicken more than makes up for the lack of crispiness. I like the fact that I don't need a knife to cut through the chicken. The pasta sauce is fine to me although Brandon thinks it's a little sweet. Verdict: Nirvana
Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad looked and sounded promising, but it did not deliver. Not sure what it is with F&E (or Chef Mike's?) decision to put red bell peppers in a lot of things. (i.e. a surprise in the Tikka Masala although not disruptive.) But the roasted red peppers KILL this salad. I really want to like it but I just can barely taste the Caesar underneath the peppers. Verdict: Pergatory
Chicken Arrabiatta with Fettuccine is a far cry from the fellow Italian entree. The chicken was bland. I mean, I saw that it's supposed to have herbs on it but I don't taste anything. It was like bland boiled chicken slices on top of noodles and sauce. The sauce, I didn't like that either. Not sure what it is but I gave it three bites before I tossed that out and went downstairs to look for edible lunch. Verdict: Hell
Finally, a field report from Sister Sarah, another friend and fan of F&E, that matches my verdict. Chicken Tortilla Soup = FAIL. Big time. First, the texture was like someone blended a proper chicken tortilla soup. Not completely smooth but not completely chunky. That's not very appetizing. And then there was the taste. It was salty. And that is all we could taste. There is absolutely nothing good we can say about the soup. Verdict: Hell
**
Now you too can be the reviewers for F&E product!
F&E just announced that you can write your review of what you've tasted at F&E Kitchen Table. Once again, they're showing us that they LISTEN. And that's why we love the store.
Chicken Tikka Masala with Basmati Rice is still the winner so far.
Chicken Parmigiana with Fettuccine comes in close second. Can't fault anyone for the parmigiana not being crispy. I mean, it's been sitting on top of sauce and noodles. However, the flavor and the tenderness of the chicken more than makes up for the lack of crispiness. I like the fact that I don't need a knife to cut through the chicken. The pasta sauce is fine to me although Brandon thinks it's a little sweet. Verdict: Nirvana
Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad looked and sounded promising, but it did not deliver. Not sure what it is with F&E (or Chef Mike's?) decision to put red bell peppers in a lot of things. (i.e. a surprise in the Tikka Masala although not disruptive.) But the roasted red peppers KILL this salad. I really want to like it but I just can barely taste the Caesar underneath the peppers. Verdict: Pergatory
Chicken Arrabiatta with Fettuccine is a far cry from the fellow Italian entree. The chicken was bland. I mean, I saw that it's supposed to have herbs on it but I don't taste anything. It was like bland boiled chicken slices on top of noodles and sauce. The sauce, I didn't like that either. Not sure what it is but I gave it three bites before I tossed that out and went downstairs to look for edible lunch. Verdict: Hell
Finally, a field report from Sister Sarah, another friend and fan of F&E, that matches my verdict. Chicken Tortilla Soup = FAIL. Big time. First, the texture was like someone blended a proper chicken tortilla soup. Not completely smooth but not completely chunky. That's not very appetizing. And then there was the taste. It was salty. And that is all we could taste. There is absolutely nothing good we can say about the soup. Verdict: Hell
**
Now you too can be the reviewers for F&E product!
F&E just announced that you can write your review of what you've tasted at F&E Kitchen Table. Once again, they're showing us that they LISTEN. And that's why we love the store.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Hooray for Coupons!
I stopped by Fresh & Easy today after a grueling day of dentistry. There were balloon sculpture things outside. Of course, with a mouthful of Novocaine (or whatever), I didn't think to take a picture of that.
It's the one year anniversary of the Spring Street store, y'all!
Well, Happy Anniversary, my favorite store!
However, I did take a picture of what the staff gave me on my way out.
Oh, the STORE COUPONS!!!!
I squealed. The lady at the check-out station behind me squealed. We were more excited about the coupons than the free canvas bags they were giving out.
A $4 off $20 (Eeek!) and $6 off $30 (Eeeeeek!) valid March 10-22 and March 23-April 5. (Eeeeeeeek!)
I could've used them today but I didn't. Because, well, my mind wasn't all that clear. Heh.
The smell of those coupons. I've missed it so.
It's the one year anniversary of the Spring Street store, y'all!
Well, Happy Anniversary, my favorite store!
However, I did take a picture of what the staff gave me on my way out.
Oh, the STORE COUPONS!!!!
I squealed. The lady at the check-out station behind me squealed. We were more excited about the coupons than the free canvas bags they were giving out.
A $4 off $20 (Eeek!) and $6 off $30 (Eeeeeek!) valid March 10-22 and March 23-April 5. (Eeeeeeeek!)
I could've used them today but I didn't. Because, well, my mind wasn't all that clear. Heh.
The smell of those coupons. I've missed it so.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Bag this
You guys would've thought it's all praise for F&E here at the Temple. Oh no, darlings. As much as we love F&E, much like any relationships, there are things that drive us bonkers about our loved ones.
One thing we like about F&E self check-out stand was that there is an option of "I'm using my own bag" so the weight of the bag is calculated into the scale. We had massive issue with using our own bags at the self check-out at Ralphs.
However, we went a few pieces over the "15 or less" limit and using 2 bags. The first time machine called for assistance, we figured because we introduced the second bag. Fine. He cleared it and we continued checking out.
We were down to ONE item when it freaked out completely. We can't even pay for the rest of the stuff. One item left, y'all. One. Little. Fruit thing.
At this point, our one man show of F&E staff was assisting someone else with scanning her groceries over at the other end.
Behind us at the other 15-or-less station, a middle aged lady was getting cranky because she needed to be carded for her wine.
"I'm 65 years old and I can't buy my own booze? What's wrong with this picture?" She was getting increasingly frustrated, especially because there was no other F&E employees to help her out.
Good god lady, did you miss a step in your program or something? But anyway.
Our Lone F&E Ranger returned to help the lush and then had to reset our machine so we can add one more thing and pay.
"Yeah, that's why there's a limit of 15 items on this station. Once the weight goes over, the scale kind of freaked out," he said.
The machine works beautifully for us most days. It just got a hell of a day to flip the hell out as almost all of the stations were being used and only one guy running the front of the shop. Frustration for all at the Valentine's Day home cook dinner rush, I suppose.
Speaking of Valentine's Day dinner rush, with the 1 lb. cube steaks, 2 potatoes and a half gallon of milk I got from F&E, I made my first Chicken Fried Steak. Got a little bit of grizzle in my meat but I think next time I know how to spot it.
One thing we like about F&E self check-out stand was that there is an option of "I'm using my own bag" so the weight of the bag is calculated into the scale. We had massive issue with using our own bags at the self check-out at Ralphs.
However, we went a few pieces over the "15 or less" limit and using 2 bags. The first time machine called for assistance, we figured because we introduced the second bag. Fine. He cleared it and we continued checking out.
We were down to ONE item when it freaked out completely. We can't even pay for the rest of the stuff. One item left, y'all. One. Little. Fruit thing.
At this point, our one man show of F&E staff was assisting someone else with scanning her groceries over at the other end.
Behind us at the other 15-or-less station, a middle aged lady was getting cranky because she needed to be carded for her wine.
"I'm 65 years old and I can't buy my own booze? What's wrong with this picture?" She was getting increasingly frustrated, especially because there was no other F&E employees to help her out.
Good god lady, did you miss a step in your program or something? But anyway.
Our Lone F&E Ranger returned to help the lush and then had to reset our machine so we can add one more thing and pay.
"Yeah, that's why there's a limit of 15 items on this station. Once the weight goes over, the scale kind of freaked out," he said.
The machine works beautifully for us most days. It just got a hell of a day to flip the hell out as almost all of the stations were being used and only one guy running the front of the shop. Frustration for all at the Valentine's Day home cook dinner rush, I suppose.
Speaking of Valentine's Day dinner rush, with the 1 lb. cube steaks, 2 potatoes and a half gallon of milk I got from F&E, I made my first Chicken Fried Steak. Got a little bit of grizzle in my meat but I think next time I know how to spot it.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sister Patty Reports: F&E Services
My friend Pat is a fan of F&E store. However, she's not big on the blogging thing. So instead, she would tell me her F&E tales to go tell the world. Like the incident with the fresh fettucine.
Sister Patty would like me to tell the world today that F&E service is, well, awesome.
First, it starts with a bad chicken.
Yep. Bad, stinky chicken that went bad a few days ahead of the expiration date on the packaging. Patty and her mom bought a whole organic chicken on Saturday, and when her mom got it out of the bag on Monday evening, the chicken obviously had gone bad.
So Patty called her La Habra Store. The manager told her to just toss the chicken but if she could bring the tag and the receipt back, they would gladly give her a new chicken.
However, the chicken that were left had the same expiration date as the bad one. Patty would rather have her refund at this point. But the manager asked her to wait for a minute, went back to the storage, and emerged with a chicken with the expiration date many days later.
Sister Patty says hallelujah to that kind of service!
Now, Sister Patty and her mom shop at their F&E on a regular basis and had gotten to know the lady at the Kitchen Table, the product sampling corner of the store. It was always the same lady at the Kitchen Table who is always happy to let the ladies sample stuff.
She even asked if the ladies would like to try ANYTHING in the store. Just bring it and she'll let them try. Sister Patty thought it was awesome that she offers, but they never took her up on it.
So I told her about the tweet from @fresh_and_easy today, "Reminder -- if you want to try out some food, take a package up to the Kitchen Table. We will open it and sample it for you right there!"
It's not just people being nice, but it's an F&E thing! I didn't know that before. And neither did Sister Patty! I mean, who else would let you taste their foods?!
For that, Sister Patty and I say hallelujah to that!
And finally, Sister Patty also got to meet with one of the F&E executives at one of the events. At the mention that she shops at the store, the exec starts asking questions. Where do you shop? What's your favorite product? How's your experience so far? They went on for a good few minutes before the meeting commenced.
She expected that it was going to be a small talk, but it turned into an on the spot, private focus group. A high level executive is standing here, talking to her about what SHE think about the store and actually cares about what she says?
Sister Patty says the final hallelujah to that!
Sister Patty would like me to tell the world today that F&E service is, well, awesome.
First, it starts with a bad chicken.
Yep. Bad, stinky chicken that went bad a few days ahead of the expiration date on the packaging. Patty and her mom bought a whole organic chicken on Saturday, and when her mom got it out of the bag on Monday evening, the chicken obviously had gone bad.
So Patty called her La Habra Store. The manager told her to just toss the chicken but if she could bring the tag and the receipt back, they would gladly give her a new chicken.
However, the chicken that were left had the same expiration date as the bad one. Patty would rather have her refund at this point. But the manager asked her to wait for a minute, went back to the storage, and emerged with a chicken with the expiration date many days later.
Sister Patty says hallelujah to that kind of service!
Now, Sister Patty and her mom shop at their F&E on a regular basis and had gotten to know the lady at the Kitchen Table, the product sampling corner of the store. It was always the same lady at the Kitchen Table who is always happy to let the ladies sample stuff.
She even asked if the ladies would like to try ANYTHING in the store. Just bring it and she'll let them try. Sister Patty thought it was awesome that she offers, but they never took her up on it.
So I told her about the tweet from @fresh_and_easy today, "Reminder -- if you want to try out some food, take a package up to the Kitchen Table. We will open it and sample it for you right there!"
It's not just people being nice, but it's an F&E thing! I didn't know that before. And neither did Sister Patty! I mean, who else would let you taste their foods?!
For that, Sister Patty and I say hallelujah to that!
And finally, Sister Patty also got to meet with one of the F&E executives at one of the events. At the mention that she shops at the store, the exec starts asking questions. Where do you shop? What's your favorite product? How's your experience so far? They went on for a good few minutes before the meeting commenced.
She expected that it was going to be a small talk, but it turned into an on the spot, private focus group. A high level executive is standing here, talking to her about what SHE think about the store and actually cares about what she says?
Sister Patty says the final hallelujah to that!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
First F&E Trip of 2009
Happy New Year, one and all! And welcome to my first trip to F&E of 2009!
After a few weeks of my holiday panic whirlwind trip to the store, now that I actually have time to look around, I've found many surprises at my local F&E. And not all of it is good.
First of all, remember about the garlic verdict I gave? I went in to find that F&E has changed the brand to Christopher Ranch. So far, no problem yet. But hey, it's only been a day.
Then the herbs. There used to be F&E brand small bunch of herbs in a zip-top bag like a few stalks of parsley or a few branches of thyme. Just the perfect size for one or two uses. They don't have those any more. Instead, it's the herb in the plastic tubs like those you get at the regular stores. Organic, though. And an interesting change. So now I have more thyme than I need (wink wink...).
Over to the next aisle, the meat. No center cut bacon at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon? Seriously? Okay. Benefit of the doubt. It's the weekend after a long holiday season. Perhaps things are a little late coming in.
Then, the spices have moved from an end shelf by the freezer to be next to the the baking supply, sharing the aisle with salad dressing and oil. That makes sense. However, I can't tell you what goes in that shelf instead of the spices now as I completely flew past it.
Around that old spice shelf is the pasta supplies. The minor change in the spaghetti sauce department upsets me a little. My staple is the Organic Traditional Marinara Sauce, Brandon's favorite for the flavor and that we can actually see the chunks of veggies in the sauce.
But I couldn't find any on the shelf. I only found the Tomato & Basil and Chunky Vegetables--not organic. I hope they were just out of stock, but I picked up the Chunky Veggie as a back up. Brandon is a bit of a creature of habits, so I really hope I don't have to reintroduce a new sauce.
Finally, at first I thought it was just because of the holidays, but there are now other "clutters" at the front of the stores. Well, they have been stacking non-perishable on sale stuff right up front before like the cases of water or beer. For the holiday, there appeared a tall rack of panettone, gourmet chocolate and After-Eights.
But when I went in yesterday, at the corner of the fridges stacked a pile of After-Eights. And a red wire magazine rack (or were there two?) right at the register.
Oh no, F&E. You didn't just start adding what I hate the most about the regular store into yours!
The special sale items at the entry way, I can kind of understand. (However, many occasions it causes a traffic jam entering the store. No good.) But the implusive buying magazine rack? Seriously. We're doing our own check-out over here and there is virtually no line to stand there and browse the magazine. I just thought it was silly.
I bought a few things I will do a review on soon including cilantro fresh salad dressing, bottled creamy Italian dressing, and the aforementioned grab-and-go loaded potatoes.
One of my 10 goals for 2009 is to cook something new at least once a month. I am sure many of those will end up here as a Dinner Possible post.
Got any food related goals? Do share!
After a few weeks of my holiday panic whirlwind trip to the store, now that I actually have time to look around, I've found many surprises at my local F&E. And not all of it is good.
First of all, remember about the garlic verdict I gave? I went in to find that F&E has changed the brand to Christopher Ranch. So far, no problem yet. But hey, it's only been a day.
Then the herbs. There used to be F&E brand small bunch of herbs in a zip-top bag like a few stalks of parsley or a few branches of thyme. Just the perfect size for one or two uses. They don't have those any more. Instead, it's the herb in the plastic tubs like those you get at the regular stores. Organic, though. And an interesting change. So now I have more thyme than I need (wink wink...).
Over to the next aisle, the meat. No center cut bacon at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon? Seriously? Okay. Benefit of the doubt. It's the weekend after a long holiday season. Perhaps things are a little late coming in.
Then, the spices have moved from an end shelf by the freezer to be next to the the baking supply, sharing the aisle with salad dressing and oil. That makes sense. However, I can't tell you what goes in that shelf instead of the spices now as I completely flew past it.
Around that old spice shelf is the pasta supplies. The minor change in the spaghetti sauce department upsets me a little. My staple is the Organic Traditional Marinara Sauce, Brandon's favorite for the flavor and that we can actually see the chunks of veggies in the sauce.
But I couldn't find any on the shelf. I only found the Tomato & Basil and Chunky Vegetables--not organic. I hope they were just out of stock, but I picked up the Chunky Veggie as a back up. Brandon is a bit of a creature of habits, so I really hope I don't have to reintroduce a new sauce.
Finally, at first I thought it was just because of the holidays, but there are now other "clutters" at the front of the stores. Well, they have been stacking non-perishable on sale stuff right up front before like the cases of water or beer. For the holiday, there appeared a tall rack of panettone, gourmet chocolate and After-Eights.
But when I went in yesterday, at the corner of the fridges stacked a pile of After-Eights. And a red wire magazine rack (or were there two?) right at the register.
Oh no, F&E. You didn't just start adding what I hate the most about the regular store into yours!
The special sale items at the entry way, I can kind of understand. (However, many occasions it causes a traffic jam entering the store. No good.) But the implusive buying magazine rack? Seriously. We're doing our own check-out over here and there is virtually no line to stand there and browse the magazine. I just thought it was silly.
I bought a few things I will do a review on soon including cilantro fresh salad dressing, bottled creamy Italian dressing, and the aforementioned grab-and-go loaded potatoes.
One of my 10 goals for 2009 is to cook something new at least once a month. I am sure many of those will end up here as a Dinner Possible post.
Got any food related goals? Do share!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Lack of updates
I apologize for the lack of updates from me these days. Frankly, I haven't set foot in any grocery store, aside from running in to fetch stuff for the office, for over a month.
Our dinners have been heavy on buying "family meals" at restaurants and eat the leftover for days to come. My day job is threatening to take over my life for a few more weeks and then Brandon and I will be off to Thailand for a well-deserved vacation.
Oh, and I've also been busy doing this. Princess Leia Zombie? That'd be me.
Fresh & Easy Hollywood Store supplied the zombies with water and granola bars that morning. Thank you for your support!
Our dinners have been heavy on buying "family meals" at restaurants and eat the leftover for days to come. My day job is threatening to take over my life for a few more weeks and then Brandon and I will be off to Thailand for a well-deserved vacation.
Oh, and I've also been busy doing this. Princess Leia Zombie? That'd be me.
Fresh & Easy Hollywood Store supplied the zombies with water and granola bars that morning. Thank you for your support!
Monday, October 13, 2008
OMGBBQ F&E Online Coupon is back
I know that I just kind of leave the Coupon link on the side bar over there even when the coupon is past deadline. That's because I'm lazy like that. Haha!
But don't you worry, I will catch you up on when it returns.
Like NOW! $6 off $30 purchase - Expires October 19.
This is the second attempt on the online coupon for F&E. The last one, I must say that for $1 off $20 purchase, it almost wasn't worth printing out. At 20% off, $6 out of $30 is still better than that.
However, I do miss the $5 out of $20 coupon. There are some rumors going around over at F&E Buzz that F&E might is slowly phasing those out to favor the ones you get in the mail.
We do not receive any F&E mailer in my Los Alamitos neighborhood. The only coupons I've been using so far were given to me at the store. I usually get them when I requested help from a staff member up in the front i.e. check ID for alcohol, coupon got stuck, or when I buy a cartfull or when a staff member offered to help with bagging. It doesn't work all the time, but once in a while I got lucky with the coupons. :)
My friends in Lakewood and Long Beach do get thein the mail and they do use them on regular basis. That makes me a little jealous.
ETA: Just came back from my store. Once again, I should've grabbed a cart and extra canvas bag. I lugged my basket to the station and ran back to get the eggs. Timing is everything so by the time I was bagging the last thing, the ever friendly F&E staff came over to offer assistance. Since he couldn't help in time, he offered me a coupon..."Actually, here! Have a few more"...make that 3 coupons.
This, my friend, is how I usually end up with my coupons. Damsel in distress seems to work. LOL!
But don't you worry, I will catch you up on when it returns.
Like NOW! $6 off $30 purchase - Expires October 19.
This is the second attempt on the online coupon for F&E. The last one, I must say that for $1 off $20 purchase, it almost wasn't worth printing out. At 20% off, $6 out of $30 is still better than that.
However, I do miss the $5 out of $20 coupon. There are some rumors going around over at F&E Buzz that F&E might is slowly phasing those out to favor the ones you get in the mail.
We do not receive any F&E mailer in my Los Alamitos neighborhood. The only coupons I've been using so far were given to me at the store. I usually get them when I requested help from a staff member up in the front i.e. check ID for alcohol, coupon got stuck, or when I buy a cartfull or when a staff member offered to help with bagging. It doesn't work all the time, but once in a while I got lucky with the coupons. :)
My friends in Lakewood and Long Beach do get thein the mail and they do use them on regular basis. That makes me a little jealous.
ETA: Just came back from my store. Once again, I should've grabbed a cart and extra canvas bag. I lugged my basket to the station and ran back to get the eggs. Timing is everything so by the time I was bagging the last thing, the ever friendly F&E staff came over to offer assistance. Since he couldn't help in time, he offered me a coupon..."Actually, here! Have a few more"...make that 3 coupons.
This, my friend, is how I usually end up with my coupons. Damsel in distress seems to work. LOL!
Thursday, September 25, 2008
OMGBBQ F&E Online Coupon!
Now you can have your OMGBBQ moment all the time.
F&E Folks share the news with their fans and bargain hunter on the internet.
Get your $1 off $10 purchase coupon here!
This one expires September 28.
I will make a link for this on the side bar for the future coupon funnage!
F&E Folks share the news with their fans and bargain hunter on the internet.
Get your $1 off $10 purchase coupon here!
This one expires September 28.
I will make a link for this on the side bar for the future coupon funnage!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Adjustments
F&E prides itself on their ability to listen to customers' feedback to make the stores really a neighborhood market.
I found a few things when I ran into the store this evening. (Some of these changes might have been there a while, but I just now noticed.)
Milk is now available in 1 quart size...and organic. It was one of my peeves with F&E when that wasn't an option. Two of us moderate consumers of milk couldn't even finish the half gallon, let alone a full one. So, hooray for the quart!
Only two kinds of Nature's Nosh available. At our store, there are the jicamas and the curried apples. Guess the public has spoken on which ones of the four they like best.
The missing Parma Butter. The butter aisle looks a little empty. The only "exotic" butter left on there is the Irish kind, right next to the ricotta cheese. Is it a good thing? Think so. No peddling of stuff folks don't need, now that's a neighborhood store.
Small Container of Mixed Fruit. If I wasn't jonesing for Papaya And Lime so much, I would've picked these up. You know how the fresh cut fruit came in this deep container tub and you can't quite finish eating it in one sitting? Up in the front there where you can find the Nosh, you can find the half-sized tubs of fruit. Perfect size.
(Oh, the papaya and lime thing? Back home, we would have papaya with breakfast with a slice of lime. It is suppose to bring out the flavors. I used to hate the lime thing when I was a kid--then again, I was never big on papaya either. Now I absolutely adore the mixture of the two flavors.)
Bacon is downsized. I usually buy a pound of bacon, yielding about 16 strips, and use 4 strips for breakfast (or dinner), and freeze the rest in bundles of 4 for future use. To my surprise, last month when I was ready to wrap up another 12 strips of leftover Center Cut Bacon, I was left with 2 more bundles instead of 3. Perplexed, I checked the packaging. It did say 12 oz.
My source at F&E explained that much like the downsizing of the salad dressing, customers wanted smaller package of bacon so there wouldn't be any leftover.
Obviously, they didn't ask "Embracing Slow Death By Pork Fat" people like myself about this. But no grudge. I just have to buy more bacon. Haha!
I found a few things when I ran into the store this evening. (Some of these changes might have been there a while, but I just now noticed.)
Milk is now available in 1 quart size...and organic. It was one of my peeves with F&E when that wasn't an option. Two of us moderate consumers of milk couldn't even finish the half gallon, let alone a full one. So, hooray for the quart!
Only two kinds of Nature's Nosh available. At our store, there are the jicamas and the curried apples. Guess the public has spoken on which ones of the four they like best.
The missing Parma Butter. The butter aisle looks a little empty. The only "exotic" butter left on there is the Irish kind, right next to the ricotta cheese. Is it a good thing? Think so. No peddling of stuff folks don't need, now that's a neighborhood store.
Small Container of Mixed Fruit. If I wasn't jonesing for Papaya And Lime so much, I would've picked these up. You know how the fresh cut fruit came in this deep container tub and you can't quite finish eating it in one sitting? Up in the front there where you can find the Nosh, you can find the half-sized tubs of fruit. Perfect size.
(Oh, the papaya and lime thing? Back home, we would have papaya with breakfast with a slice of lime. It is suppose to bring out the flavors. I used to hate the lime thing when I was a kid--then again, I was never big on papaya either. Now I absolutely adore the mixture of the two flavors.)
Bacon is downsized. I usually buy a pound of bacon, yielding about 16 strips, and use 4 strips for breakfast (or dinner), and freeze the rest in bundles of 4 for future use. To my surprise, last month when I was ready to wrap up another 12 strips of leftover Center Cut Bacon, I was left with 2 more bundles instead of 3. Perplexed, I checked the packaging. It did say 12 oz.
My source at F&E explained that much like the downsizing of the salad dressing, customers wanted smaller package of bacon so there wouldn't be any leftover.
Obviously, they didn't ask "Embracing Slow Death By Pork Fat" people like myself about this. But no grudge. I just have to buy more bacon. Haha!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Music and passion
F&E is now on Twitter. And that's where I have been getting some fresh information lately (like the grill pack going on sale and such.)
@Fresh_and_Easy broadcast a message today about the new concert series they will start up at the Hollywood branch. Free live acoustic music each Thursday night at 7PM in September.
Doesn't that sound just like Hollywood to you?
Down here at the Spring street store, I don't know if they would need a concert series to bring in customers because at 6 p.m. today, the store was PACKED!
As in, I actually was in line for about 15 seconds. *Gasp*
I was looking around for an empty station but there was none so I settled in behind this lady who actually needed help checking out her few flats of bottled water. The F&E staff rushed over to me to help me with my heavy basket and pointed out the station where someone was just leaving. He also gave me a handful of coupons.
Obviously, my "buy what I can carry" strategies didn't work today as I loaded up on fruits, juices, and puddings.
Oh yes, the great pudding reviews are on the way!
Speaking of review, I must break it to you yet another Hell rating.
The grab-and-go Tangerine Chicken and Rice was horrible. I'm sure someone might like this more than I did, but this is actually the first F&E product I had to throw away after a few bites. (Well, that and the one time I accidentally picked up a sugar-free French Vanilla pudding. I HATE artificial sweetner so that didn't go past one bite.)
The chicken is moist and the rice is soft for being a grab-and-go. However that tangerine sauce tasted like, well, tangerine syrup. All sweet and not enough savory. The flavors just refuse to come together, resulting in a confusion on my palettes. Unless that's changed, I don't know if this dish can be saved, personally. That is the #1 ick for me.
Ick #2 is that, much like the rug on the Dude's floor, the sauce is supposed to tie the bowl together. But since the chicken wasn't simmered in this sauce, it's just cooked chicken, veggies and rice topped with the sauce. And STILL the whole thing wouldn't come together. When I took a bite out of the chicken, I don't taste the flavor of something cooked in tangerine sauce, but a sad piece of chicken breast steamed all by its lonesome with minimal seasoning.
Verdict: Hell
@Fresh_and_Easy broadcast a message today about the new concert series they will start up at the Hollywood branch. Free live acoustic music each Thursday night at 7PM in September.
Doesn't that sound just like Hollywood to you?
Down here at the Spring street store, I don't know if they would need a concert series to bring in customers because at 6 p.m. today, the store was PACKED!
As in, I actually was in line for about 15 seconds. *Gasp*
I was looking around for an empty station but there was none so I settled in behind this lady who actually needed help checking out her few flats of bottled water. The F&E staff rushed over to me to help me with my heavy basket and pointed out the station where someone was just leaving. He also gave me a handful of coupons.
Obviously, my "buy what I can carry" strategies didn't work today as I loaded up on fruits, juices, and puddings.
Oh yes, the great pudding reviews are on the way!
Speaking of review, I must break it to you yet another Hell rating.
The grab-and-go Tangerine Chicken and Rice was horrible. I'm sure someone might like this more than I did, but this is actually the first F&E product I had to throw away after a few bites. (Well, that and the one time I accidentally picked up a sugar-free French Vanilla pudding. I HATE artificial sweetner so that didn't go past one bite.)
The chicken is moist and the rice is soft for being a grab-and-go. However that tangerine sauce tasted like, well, tangerine syrup. All sweet and not enough savory. The flavors just refuse to come together, resulting in a confusion on my palettes. Unless that's changed, I don't know if this dish can be saved, personally. That is the #1 ick for me.
Ick #2 is that, much like the rug on the Dude's floor, the sauce is supposed to tie the bowl together. But since the chicken wasn't simmered in this sauce, it's just cooked chicken, veggies and rice topped with the sauce. And STILL the whole thing wouldn't come together. When I took a bite out of the chicken, I don't taste the flavor of something cooked in tangerine sauce, but a sad piece of chicken breast steamed all by its lonesome with minimal seasoning.
Verdict: Hell
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)