So we just got back from the grocery store and I’m mad. We’ve shopped at several stores over the year we’ve lived in Springfield. We originally shopped at Price Cutter when we moved, but with the house switched to shopping at Wal-Mart to save a little money. A couple of weeks ago we decided that the quality of products at Wal-Mart didn’t justify the cost savings. Today I’m not so sure. I think Wal-Mart may have a better selection than the Price Cutter Plus on Battlefield (near 65). I’m needing dutch process cocoa for an upcoming ice cream entry, but apparently that is not something that can be stocked in the store here. The tomatoes are what pushed me over the edge though.
I know that we should buy produce from local farmers, in fact we usually do shop at the farmers market, but schedules and the weather have made in difficult to stand in line to buy produce. I don’t expect to get great produce at the supermarket, but I expect it to be edible. Lettuce, onions, and even cucumbers are usually okay, but I don’t understand why it is so hard for a supermarket to have a decent tomato in JULY! I can get a better tomato from a can than I can buy at the Price Cutter. Today, I was unable to find a tomato that didn’t have the hardness of a baseball, most of which had been trucked in from Mexico and grown hydroponically. IT’S JULY!!!! When we lived in Columbia we were able to get decent tomatoes (grown in Arkansas mind you) at Schnucks. The best I can tell is that Price Cutter is the equivalent supermarket chain here in Springfield.
This is the sort of thing that makes me want to become a nut job who lives in the middle of nowhere and grows all his own food. Does anybody know where I can buy a decent tomato without standing in a 30 minute line in the 100° sun?