Sunday, July 10, 2011

Friendly city food coop grand opening


I was at an awesome and long-awaited event yesterday afternoon: the grand opening of the Friendly City Food Coop. As a member for several years, albiet not a particularly active one, I have been following the development of this project eagerly.

The store is gorgeous. It's laid out nicely, and there's room enough to room around or stop to chat with a friend (and every time I've been in there, I've run into a friend). The prices are comparable to what you'd find at Martin's, and there are a few screaming deals to be had. For example, I got a whole hormone-free, free-range, happy chicken for about $11. Yum! Even if a few things are a little pricier ($6 bag of potato chips, anyone?), remember--the community owns this place. The money stays here. So quit your whining and support it. If you want to shop there without ending up in the poorhouse, the rules are the same as at any grocery store--shop the perimeter. The produce, bulk items, dairy, and meat are all reasonably priced. It's the processed foods that get you in trouble. Well, those and the wall o' fair trade and organic chocolate bars. My friend brought a bar of the almond and sea-salt Chocolove to a get-together and it was just brain-melting-ly delicious.

Many of the meat and produce items are sourced locally. These are labeled very clearly. That's one major thing I noticed--the co-op has done a great job of making sure it's easy to tell where the food is coming from and what kind of happy special it is.

Can I just say, I'm totally biased? I'm so proud of our community for having a place like this. Really. Good job, Harrisonburg! Way to be awesome. You know where the real danger is for my wallet at this store? Not the mint-flavored Newman-Os (which are wonderful, FYI). No, it's the shwag. I already bought a FC2-branded Chicco bag for my husband as a Father's Day gift. It's only a matter of time before an impulsive moment lands another one and a FC2 t-shirt in my cart. I want people to know that I'm a member/owner. I want people to check it out, and hey, if you aren't a member, think about joining! Oh, but I should be clear--nonmembers are totally welcome to shop there.


Also, do these people ever know how to throw a party. I took my Little (from Big Brothers/Big Sisters), his sister, my husband, and my baby, and there was something for everyone. A dozen tents held information and activities provided by a number of worthy organizations, from the Radical Roots CSA to a group called New Community Project, which is working on creating a bikable Harrisonburg. Nu-Beginnings Farm had sample breads out (which you can buy at the Co-op). There were at least two booths with sample coffee. Which they gave to my eight-year-old Little. THANKS, COFFEE GUYS.

They had tie-dying, for children of all ages. Some of it came out really nicely!
Corn hole was quite popular. I still don't know how to play it, but these children demonstrated a first: I've never seen H-burgers play cornhole without simultaneously drinking cheap beer. I thought that was in the rules. Shows how much I know.
I didn't get a picture, but somebody gave my Littles a cup of dirt which purportedly had some carrot seeds in it. I hope that they grow. Thanks, whoever you are. The kids are excited.

There were some awesome raffles--really great prizes, and lots of them. My husband won a gift certificate to Earth and Tea, which is one of his favorite local eateries (oh, I should totally write a post about them!). My Little won a gift certificate to Vito's, on Port Republic. He says he's going to take his mom out to dinner for her birthday. Is that the cutest thing ever, or what? If I have done one great thing through Big Brothers/Big Sisters, it's educating this child about local dining. Before we met, his favorite restaurant in town was Dairy Queen. Now it's Jess's Quick Lunch...which is at least a moderate improvement. At least they're locally owned.

(Yes, that's Mary Jo, the flower lady, checking out the Radical Roots booth).

These guys were raffling off a $20 gift certificate to any downtown restaurant to promote their new web service, Our Common Place. I didn't win it (who needs it more than the lady who writes the food blog? FYI, I've never had a free meal in this town), but I thought I'd give them a shout-out anyway. I signed up and I've already gotten a few recommendations for local businesses. It's a nice site; you should check it out.

Is that a cute baby, or what (gratuitous baby shot)?

We encountered a number of local celebrities. If you hear a familiar soothing voice behind you when you're measuring bulk items in the co-op, don't freak out. WMRA's Tina Owens (you know her from Acoustic Cafe) is working at FC2.

Rumor has it that the Steel Wheels played at the opening, but I must have been there at the wrong time. There was a really nice band while we were there, featuring a Little Grill guy as the lead singer/guitarist. However, since the LGC peeps don't introduce themselves when they take your drink order, I've seen this guy every couple of weeks for years and don't know his name. Mystery Grill Man, nice music. Thanks!
(ETA: I've been informed that the lead singer of this band (I'm thinking they go by "The Dish Dogs" is Chris Howdyshell, aka "Howdy." My source adds: "He's good people.)

Last, but never least, my friend and co-worker Tony Lopez, a performer with local improv group No Strings Attached, was dressed as a giant rollerblading carrot.

Check out the Friendly City Food Co-op next time you have a chance. You'll be in the neighborhood, I'm sure. It's next to Kline's! :)

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the shout-out... and for the great write up on the Grand Opening! - Tina

    ReplyDelete