News Taffy

At last Jonesboro is catching up to other cities in grocery store options. For years, I have longed for more selection and better quality from our local grocers. Many times I have read recipes and sighed in frustration, knowing the ingredients could not be found locally. Friends may remember how excited I was a couple a years ago when I found Meyer lemons in Wal Mart. I grabbed two bags and rushed home to begin a weekend filled with lemon dishes from pancakes to martinis.

Now the new Kroger is finally open and while not all that I hoped for, it is pretty close. If you have not gone for fear of the crowds, I have not found the store to feel overly crowded because it is so large that people spread out well. They are even handing out maps so you can find things. One of my criticisms is that things aren’t laid out in a logical way; the aisles and food groups seem a bit haphazard. Shopping will take longer until you learn the new layout plus you will spend a lot of time ogling all that is available. The best part of the new store is the deli department. I could spend hours checking out the cheeses, the prepared foods like the sushi and salad bar and the expanded deli meats. The produce section is huge and they do have more variety, though not as much as I’d hoped. I did see some lovely purple kale, Brussel sprouts on the stalk and the largest fresh cranberries I’ve ever seen. There are more organic, natural and healthy options as well. The seafood department was my biggest disappointment as there was nothing new, just more of the same. Can’t have it all, can we?

In case you missed the news, Jonesboro will soon have other grocery stores opening. Aldi on Caraway next to Gateway tires is almost ready. Aldi stores seek to provide low prices on the most popular grocery items so they do not carry as much variety as Wal Mart or Kroger. To keep prices low, Aldi only accepts debit or EBT cards and cash, carries store brands, has shorter shopping hours and builds energy saving stores. Bring your own reusable bags and expect to return your own shopping cart which you rent for a quarter.

The Truck Patch Natural Market is set to open spring of 2015 in the shopping center near Outback. Based in Mountain Home, this grocery store promises to sell only local, organic, and natural foods without chemicals. This store sounds like the Whole Food chain and I can’t wait to see the actual store.

Wal Mart is opening two new smaller versions called Wal Mart Neighborhood Market stores. Though not a huge fan of shopping at the impersonal big box chain, I will say that Wal Mart has made some good changes and that their produce looks fresh and there is a great variety of fruits and vegetables.

Bill’s Fresh Market has finally opened a new store on the much underserved side of town on Johnson near Main street. With all these new grocery stores, there is no excuse not to find healthier options.