One Lucky Duck!

So, finally, sunshine and warmth on the same day...hmm. While we were hauling our hefty bag of compost down to Union Square on the subway, Susannah and I made a quick stop-off at One Lucky Duck to pick up lunch. After downing a Thai green juice, Susannah is pictured eating her tortilla wraps...she loved the corn cilantro guacamole and sun dried tomato spread. I am a sucker for the sesame slaw but can't wait to try the falafel salad. One Lucky Duck is all raw and is the take-out annex of Pure Food and Wine, so that about sums up its dedication to really fresh raw creations and to raw treats! They also have great supplies like root powders for sweetening (Yacon and Maca) and some dehydrated snacks and raw nut butters.

So, we got out of there without spilling our compost (a weekend's worth of carrot peels, celery strings, lentils, all sorts of vegetable scraps from a broth project that had a life of its own and a lot of salads and steamed vegetables, and even a friend's banana peel, added before we hit the road.) It was starting to stink but, thank goodness, the compost bins were there and had room for our addition...

After buying our vegetables at the greenmarket, we moved on to have quite a day exploring Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. It was all very interesting people watching, Trader Joe's had quite the crowd, students, earthy types and those on a budget, really you could hardly move in there, but I had some quality issues with the produce and so much of their food is prepared already rather than ingredients. I just was not too impressed although for things like chocolate or exotic prepared appetizers and frozen meals, it is an interesting selection AND it really has inexpensive food bringing organic produce well within reach of the average shopper. So, we left with four fruit leathers and some corn tortillas which was actually the purpose of the trip as tasty corn tortillas without preservatives are nearly impossible to find. And, when we checked out I must say, as any time I have ever visited a Trader Joe's, I always surprised by just how low my bill was, today three dollars.

So, we wandered into Whole Foods because I still needed romaine lettuce, basil and cilantro and I just could not bring myself to buy it at Trader Joe's where the crowds of shoppers were causing excessive wilting and the teams could not keep the shelves filled. At Whole Foods, we spent a bundle and got, well, I admit, not all that much. So, there is the trade off. My romaine, cilantro, peanut butter, salsa and some berries and two magazines were over...I just can't admit how many dollars...So, Susannah and I had a long talk about prices and fresh foods and then walked the seventy blocks home partly through Central Park. We had so many bags between leftovers from lunch, lots of farmer's market produce, plus the two stores, so it was one heavy stroller...I was looking at intensive fatigue but relieved it with a cup of warm broth which perked me up and quenched my thirst.

Interesting to note that quite a few items at both Trader Joe's and Whole Foods are certified organic by QAI and several other certifiers some of which do not inspect themselves but hire inspectors in different countries. There were times at both stores that the source of the food could not be found easily on the package or that the "Made in the US" or Canada seemed like evasive language rather that the country of origin of the actual crops. I think all chains are encountering the same problems of the global food supply...yikes. If you care to know the source, write to the company. Most brands will tell you where they obtain ingredients...