Monday, August 07, 2006

white white wine

A new single is sweeping Sacramento. It's called "white white wine" by the Jay and Joel show. FM 102 only has it in occasional rotation so to hear it go here. I'm surprised that they'll allow lyrics like "look at the behind and your peepee turns to pine" on the radio but I guess those are the times we live in.

Whole Foods is a pretty lame chain but I selfishly would be kinda glad if one opened up at that F st. location, mostly because I might move to that neighborhood next year and I don't want to take that lame bike ride to the old Safeway all the time. I don't know if it would threaten the co-op but between you and me I never go to the co-op.

I took an early trip to the sunday farmer's market and it is even better earlier in the morning. Everyone is so happy looking, it's nice. Beautiful zinnias are in season at the flower booths and I got two kinds of breakfast pork from Bledsoe's (vegetables? who needs 'em?). Their bacon is just normal bacon but the Canadian bacon is something special. It's a slab that you cut slices from and it's really smoky and almost like a pork chop in consistency. There was very little grease in the pan when I was done frying it so I'm going to classify it as a lean health food. Of course we fried the last few slices in bacon fat so they probably weren't as healthy.

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Where would the Whole Foods be located?
-Ally

beckler said...

in any closed-down albertons. no one knows which ones if any. well, someone at whole foods probably knows.

Anonymous said...

The lot at 23 and F seems too small for a Whole Foods, unless, of course, they bulldoze the existing building and some of the surrounding homes. I would like to see it become a Trader Joe's, but that is highly unlikely. Do you know if the property is zoned as commercial?

Anonymous said...

Isn't there another closed down Albertsons in East Sac? I would think that would be their prime audience. I am not completely anti-Whole Foods. They usually rate as one of the top companies to work for in the US. I love their Challah bread.
-Ally

leon said...

I'll take Whole Foods over any other grocery chain any day

Anonymous said...

If all it takes to put the CO-OP out of business is one competitor, then they must be doing something wrong. It's not like Whole Foods is much (if any) cheaper like in a Wal-Mart scenario.

miller

Anonymous said...

Yeah, the area is zoned for mixed-use. Across 23rd, there was a gas station that people tried to do other things with. Not having ever been to whole foods, I'm agnostic. However, I vote for Trader Joe's. (Rebel Yell whiskey!)

The area I'm referring to is the 23rd and F. I do believe that the other closure is the one at 48th and J. Is the 56th and Folsom store staying open?

Ed

Anonymous said...

whole foods is heaven on earth. employees are treated great, benefits are good, wages are fair and the deli is incredible. the smoothies and juices are delicious and the variety of fancy meats makes my mouth water as i type. i'd like to propose that whole foods open in every abandoned albertsons in the nation.

Anonymous said...

Whole Foods might be heaven on earth... unless you prefer employee unions and environmental sustainability. Whole Foods' owner has said he'd shutter the business before he'd let the employees unionize. WF also endorses corporate-style organics, not the local and sustainable types.

Don't get me wrong-- I'm not saying they're awful, but calling WF 'heaven on earth' might be stretching it a bit.

--cynical omf

beckler said...

just to throw this into the mix-at least when i worked at the co-op I was barely paid above minimum wage and they were very strict on lateness and sick days to the extent where if you were like three minutes late maybe three or four times within a certain time period you were fired (i know i'm being vague, it's hard to remember but it's the strictest policy i ever experienced). We heard tales of Bel-Air employees making lots but we were paid little. And it's union!

Alice said...

omf

i am for unionization most of the time. but some unions are actually way more fucked up than business owners. having seen some of that stuff at my last place of employment i can understand why WF might have ilk with their employees unionizing if the particular union that wants the business of WF employees is totally off their rocker with fucked up tactics when it comes to 'negotiating'.

Also, WF emplyees get to vote on their benefits so it's not like they don't have any representation within their own organization. They probably have more power to suggest employee policy than some unionized workers whose issues have fallen under the radar of a larger labor union more intent on power than actually benefitting their members.

Anonymous said...

FYI - Zen Toro out- Taka's in....

beckler said...

is this like the cosmo in and out page or an actual location change?

Anonymous said...

Some unions are fucked up, no argument. I can see why there are disadvantages to unionization in some cases... but that's something that the employees should be able to choose-- not the employer. Employees have to vote to 'go' union, and i suspect that employees that have a happy employee-employer relationship are pretty unlikely to vote to join an external union.

beckler said...

in: jay and joel show
out: empire club

leon said...

in : white white wine
out : red red wine

Anonymous said...

in: the "Armenian" soul patch on my back
out: Collin Farrells soul patch in 'Miami Vice'

Anonymous said...

IN: Rom

OUT: All you other space knights.

miller

Anonymous said...

I know being stuck in the grid has few choices for supa markets but my prime choices were the asians markets on stockton.if ya went early in the morning you could see local growers/small time gardeners unloading their goods.Prices were always cheap and the veggies great.The Baker in the jensen/stockton made cheap kick ass pork bows and awesome almond cookies.Sunday i found a foreigner friendly jellyfish and got stung.I went swimming near fukuoka on the day the usa bombed hiroshima with the atomic bomb so lots of right wingers were out.I was swimming next to a yakuza guy covered in buddha/dragon tats and pompador hair doo.My wife said ya know who your swimming next to---i said yea..I usually get excited but i kept my wits with me cause he kinda growled when talking..

Anonymous said...

The word on the street is that Zen Toro is leaving and Taka's is taking its place.

Anonymous said...

The SRD'ers already know this, but I thought I'd share it with the Heckasac'ers. I got an email from Rob Sperling, who is chair of the Boulevard Park Neighborhood Association, regarding the Albertsons on 23rd and F. He said that it was supposed to close on August 6th. (Has that happened?) I emailed him back to see what's new but I haven't heard anything yet.

-charvey

Anonymous said...

Duh-
Here's that email:

"Chris-

Here is what we have to date:

The Albertson's site at 22nd - 23rd and F street is zone C -1 and is
approx 1.1 acres. The C - 1 allows for neighborhood serving
commercial as well as residential by right in the Central City.
This site, if developed as housing would be able to have a maximum
of 33 units on the site. The height limit is 35' if located within
100 feet of a residential zone, which this site is, however if 25%
of the development is residential the height limit is 55'. There
will also be setbacks and stepback requirements.

The site is for sale, we have not been able to obtain the sale
price. At this point until a purchaser is found it is unknown what
will happen to the site. I will keep you in the loop as we learn
more

Rob Sperling, Chair
BPNA"

Anonymous said...

amen OMF. while Whole Foods may not be the worst chain to go in, they do have a long way to go from being perfect.

i highly reccomend reading the Omnivore's Dilemma. the author discusses the industrialization of the organic movement.

seconding Jay on the fact that the asian markets are some of the best in town. usually locally owned, inexpensive local produce, etc.

hey Jay - you were in Fukuoka!? neat. i can't wait!

Anonymous said...

I haven't read the Omnivore's Dilemma", but I do have to say I am cautious of demonizing corporations that make attempts to do things right. Sometimes they take the biggest hit, because our expectations are even higher for "progressive" organizations.
-Ally

Anonymous said...

I live two blocks from WF, so I shop there a lot. Yes, they're expensive, but they have a generic brand, 365, which is often much less expensive than the same items at Safeway, Bel Air or Raley's. And, if I only purchase what's on sale, and avoid the bakery and deli, I end up spending the exact same amount as I would at Safeway using my club card.

I don't buy much produce at WF. The fact that they seldom, if ever, carry local produce is my biggest gripe with them. But, like many people who read this blog, I really enjoy going to the farmers market for my produce.

I know that Petrovich is working on turning the now-empty 48th & J St. Albertson's into another Rite Aid. The Inside East Sac rag editor did a piece on that a month or two ago. He wanted to bring in something like WF or TJ, but they want a bigger space.

Also, when a relative of mine spoke with a salesperson for the Sac Towers, the salesperson said that WF was looking to have a very large store on the ground floor of the Towers.

Anonymous said...

I guess that answers the question "Where Would Donald Shop"?

miller

beckler said...

what the fuck is up with petrovich and rite aids?????????? how many fucking rite aids does he think this town can handle?

Anonymous said...

No kidding! Rite Aid is seriously posturing to be the Duane Reade of Sacramento.

Niki

Anonymous said...

There is already a Longs by Trader Joes and a Rite Aid on Alhambra. Is Rite Aid the new McDonalds/Starbucks?
-Ally