Walnut Creek Fresh & Easy Drive By

During lunch today, I went ahead and swung by to check in on a store that was a bit closer to launch than my local Pleasanton location.




The location is a bit off the beaten path (well, at least for me). It seemed to be in a fairly busy "strip mall" however.

There were a few crews there working on the signage (Tracy Signs ... the same vendor I ran into on my first drive by of the Pleasanton location), painting (several empty Benjamin Moore 5 gallon paint buckets out back), and an HVAC / refrigeration company.

I wasn't able to take a long peek inside, but it looked as though they were still in the pre-equipment phase.

Fresh & Easy Pleasanton Update

I was going to try to swing by weekly, but had a slight delay in making my way over this last weekend. At least there is an update today ... a change from the generic, "Now Hiring" sign to a sign with the April 13 grand opening date (as well as some construction fencing out front):





The interior has a ways to go, but it's nice to see they've started (there weren't any crews there last week).

Goodbye Whole Foods

So, I went to Whole Paycheck today to grab some lunch with some co-workers. I toiled over what to get since everything was excessively expensive ($10 for a pre-packaged salad ... really?).

I finally settle on purchasing a single chicken tamale from the "buffet" line. It was $3.24 for a kinda gross tamale that was about 90% masa. I was glad to get out of the office, but I'm thinking that was my last Whole Foods purchase I'll make if I can help it after Fresh & Easy opens up.

On a side note, here is a great recipe for tamales that rocks ... but is quite a bit of work:

Chicken and Goat Cheese Tamales with Chile Verde

Local Article

I read this today as well:

Oakland Tribune

I know I'll shop less at the local Safeway and Trader Joes (not that I go there much it seems as they take away the items that I used to really like).

Pleasanton Store Check In

Yesterday I swung by the Pleasanton store location to see if any work started and it looks like they haven't started swinging any hammers yet.

However, they did put up a temp sign / banner. Also, as I was pulling away, a bucket truck was pulling in from a sign company out in Tracy ... I assume they were there in some capacity to inspect the building.

Sadly, I left my camera at home and had to resort to the camera phone. The Epic does take decent pictures sometimes though. Also, I managed to pick up $27 worth of ramen noodles and gyoza across the street at the 99 Ranch.

Review Categories

I definitely want to place general categories on my future reviews, so I'll use the Safeway baseline for now and may change it to fit more general categories with more description sub-categories:

Baby (I probably will not be buying anything from this ... unless maybe it's a tushie-wipe ... for the dogs, not me!)
Beer, Wine, and Spirits
Beverages
Bread and Bakery
Breakfast and Cereal
Canned Goods and Soups
Condiments, Spices, and Baking (odd combo there)
Cookies, Snacks, and Candy
Dairy, Eggs, and Cheese
Frozen Foods
Fruits and Vegetables
Grains, Pasta, and Sides
International Cuisine
Meat and Seafood
Paper, Cleaning, and Home
Personal Care (removed "pharmacy")
Pets

I didn't keep the deli, flowers, and tobacco on the list ...

Beware!

So, I postponed signing up for email notifications and the free Fresh & Easy reusable grocery bag until I knew when the openings would occur.

99 cent free bag? Sure, why not (the two heavier canvas bags we already have were $2.99 or $3.99 ... I forget), sign me up.

Little did I know that the sign-up coupons expire in a paltry 12 calendar days from now. I'll just have to use another email address when I'm a few days closer to the Danville opening.

Openings I Plan On Attending

Well, I looked over the list and feel I can slip away from work during lunch to do:

Danville, March 2
Concord, March 16
Walnut Creek, March 23
Pleasanton, April 13

Which ones will you go to?

Northern Califorinia Openings! At Last.

After long last, the time is near and the official locations and dates have been announced. For those that know me, you know how excited I am ... excited over a grocery store? Yes! I've been to a few locations in Southern California and Nevada (Vegas) and I don't even live there.

I made it a point to travel out to a location in Vegas on our week long vacation so I could stock up on goodies. I still even have some dried pasta and unsalted pistachios from the Vegas trip in the cupboards.

The info:


March 2nd

Bird Ave. & Minnesota Ave.
San Jose
Diablo Blvd. & Hwy 680
Danville


March 9th

Cabrillo Hwy. & Linda Mar Blvd.
Pacifica


March 16th

Clayton Rd. & Ygnacio Valley Rd.
Concord
Elmira Rd. & Nut Tree Rd.
Vacaville


March 23rd

Oakdale Rd. & Lancey Dr.
Modesto
Ygnacio Valley Rd. & San Carlos Rd.
Walnut Creek


April 13th

Rosewood Dr. & Santa Rita Rd.
Pleasanton


April 27th

Mission Blvd. & Rousseau St.
Hayward
Imola Ave. & Jefferson St.
Napa
Saratoga Ave. & Payne Ave.
San Jose


The official news:

Northern California Openings!