A BREATH OF "FRESH" AIR

They just opened one of the "Fresh and Easy" grocery chains near me. I was unfamiliar with them when I noticed it was being built so I did some research and found that 1) they were a chain based in England and 2) they are similar to a Trader Joe's but have item that TJ's doesn't carry (i.e. soda) to alleviate the need to shop at TJ's and your regular grocery store. I was sold. I was so excited about this store opening that I actually showed up with my shopping list a week before they opened. I have started seeing them pop up here and there and noticed that they are usually in neighborhoods that are not the best. Vanz thinks this is part of their clever marketing ploy. At any rate, I finally shopped there today and am in love. It reminded me of a store we went to in Hong Kong..very British influenced (obviously), but still had all the things I need and they were easy to find. They had lots of indian and thai food too and they even had Mac Salad, which I bought for Vanz since there is no way I would ever make it and it really did look almost good. The employees were all friendly and even indulged Sailor by letting her hand them each item in the cart to go through the scanner (therefore making the process twice as long). The prices were very reasonable and the selection was good. They had lots of organic options and I found plenty of things to add to Sailor's lunch box (they even had pre-made kids lunches, which I bought a few of). The only disappointment was I had hoped they would have more British groceries for my Aussie loving husband. A meat pie or two or even some special Cadbury selections would have been great. Maybe I'll find more of that on my next, more thorough visit!