With all the talk on bizbuzz about new fast-food restaurants coming to Tupelo (Krystal, Little Caesars), I’m reminded just how much many folks have stopped cooking at home because prepared food is so convenient. And what a shame that is. My favorite part of every day is sitting at the kitchen table each evening with my husband and children and discussing our day and planning the weekend.
Some nights we eat well: Tuesday we had grilled turkey tenderloins, butterbeans, and mashed potatoes with little wells scooped out of the middle and filled with steamed green peas (when we were little, these were called Bird Nests). But last night was turkey burgers and a prepared box of Suddenly Pasta. The bottom line is, we ate at home, together, and I controlled the ingredients that went into each dish. I also controlled the portion size.
I wonder how many people who like to cook, but don’t make the time to cook (and I say make the time because both my husband and I have full-time jobs and over-booked kids), would begin cooking again if they had a Fresh Market or Whole Foods or Wild Oats to shop in?
I’m certainly not knocking our grocery stores here in Northeast Mississippi. There’s much to be said for family-owned, service-oriented supermarkets. But there’s also something to be said for the ambiance of a Fresh Market, with classical music playing and hardwood floors and ambient lighting. Not to mention the cases of fresh fish, stuffed chicken breasts and fruit tarts and the rows and rows of artisan breads, gourmet cheeses and hard-to-find items.
Whenever I plan a trip to Memphis or Birmingham, I always pack a cooler. My last stop on the way home is Fresh Market.
When Toyota first announced it was coming to NEMiss, David Rumbarger, president and CEO of the Community Development Foundation, came to the Journal one day to talk with all the writers about how Toyota will affect our beats (business, education, health, food, etc.). At that point, because I had him cornered, I asked David what it would take to get a Fresh Market-type grocery store in Tupelo. His answer was two more upscale subdivisions in west Tupelo.
So, y’all, start building!
5 Comments
May 22, 2008 at 4:00 pm
I love Fresh Market! I actually emailed them a couple of years ago and begged them to consider Tupelo. The reply I got was that it was not a market they were considering at the time. Kroger is fine; but, I would love a really nice store. There is a new “market” being built in Saltillo apparently. I think it is called “City Market” or something close to that. I don’t know the details; but, all they have promoted is that it wouldn’t look like a regular store on the inside. Now what that means, I have have no clue. For now, I guess we’ll keep taking our coolers to Memphis!
May 22, 2008 at 8:58 pm
I had not heard of the City Market. I’ll have to do some poking around. If I’ll drive to Memphis for a Fresh Market, I’ll certainly drive to Saltillo for something similar. How exciting!
I contemplated driving to Memphis on Sunday to do some Fresh Market shopping, but I’m figuring gas will be $4 a gallon by then and I just can’t justify the trip for only one stop. Of course, I could always swing by Target, too …
May 27, 2008 at 12:27 am
WTVA did a story a few months back about the new store. I think Jay Shannon was the person interviewed, so he could probably tell you more.
May 27, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Thanks for the info. I’ll try to give him a call or get by there this week.
May 27, 2008 at 4:47 pm
We did a story on the Saltillo project in the Journal’s business section a while back. The developer, Jay Shannon, said that a grocery store with a Fresh Market “concept” will be adjacent to the shopping center.
Here’s the blog coverage from February:
http://tupelobizbuzz.wordpress.com/2008/02/19/fresh-market-coming-to-mississippi/
Here’s the paper coverage from December 2007:
http://djournal.com/pages/archive.asp?ID=260840&pub=1&div=News