Why Amazon Fresh is Amazing

Today I received my second order from Amazon Fresh. It's taken me a while to try it out, even with the glowing review my friend Liz gave the service.

This is what I used to think:

1. Amazon Fresh is probably best suited for very busy individuals, and I can get my own groceries, ThankYouVeryMuch.
2. It must be wasteful to have a giant truck deliver my food.
3. It's probably way too expensive.

And now I'm sitting here in awe that my groceries have miraculously found their way to my doorstep, all high quality foods for no more than what I would have paid for at my local grocery stores.

I love that I shop as my week progresses. I log on when I notice that we're low on something and add it to my cart. When I have an order that is above $100, I pick a time that works (they mark the time slots that an Amazon delivery truck will already be in the area, so the trucks aren't making a special trip just for me), and the food is delivered.

In the shopping process, I can check the "local" and "organic" search requirements. This saves me time in my food hunting process. And it introduces me to a wider variety of local foods that my supermarket has ignored in favor for national, better known brands. For example, today I received fresh brats made with Redhook beer. Redhook! The beer made in the brewery that is about 10 minutes away from my condo. Why does this matter? Well, I know the money is going into our local economy, and I know that the food is going to be fresh.

Shopping is usually a three store experience for me, and I'm often stuck settling for food that I'm not all that excited about. Wilted celery, non-organic deli meat, a lack of frozen coho salmon, poor selection of organic fruits, nonexistent organic frozen vegetables, etc. And take a look at what I found at Amazon Fresh:
Yup, frozen organic LOCAL veggies. AND grass fed, local, free range beef.

And don't get me started on my alternative shopping experiences-

• Trader Joe's, while wonderful and my favorite chain grocery store, always ends up being a bit of a madhouse. The aisles are jammed together full of people pushing you out of the way, and the one item you want it usually the one that is out on the shelves, and the poor staff is struggling to keep up with the hordes of people pillaging their store.

• Safeway is a great place to get shot. I'm pretty sure they named it 'Safeway' to be ironic. On the plus side, you always have a 50/50 chance of seeing someone pee on the outside of the building.
  

• QFC must stand for "Quit F*cking Caring" because that's pretty much the attitude of the people who work there. Also, their motto must be from the Highlander movie. "There can only be one..." checker. Great meat and seafood department, though!

• Costco, while epic and monolithic, doesn't work for the two of us. I can never use up the giant portions of food. Also, we don't have a lot of space, so buying in bulk is an exercise in frustration and money. I'd rather eat fresh, and avoid the packaged deals.
  

So far I've been in awe with the quality of the food. Last week, we had organic Pink Lady apples (my husband's favorite!) and they were beautiful. They were the type of apples you use in food photography, perfectly pink and without a blemish. And this week, the celery is crisp and so large that it doesn't completely fit diagonally in my crisper. When you have such good produce, you use it. Every last bit. Money well spent? I think so!

One thing that I cannot wait to try is the "Automatic Delivery" option Amazon Fresh offers. You can save up to 10-15% on food you schedule ahead of time. So once I figure out exactly what we use and we're established in our new home, I'll be setting this up and saving more money in the process.

So well done, Amazon Fresh! You've converted this stubborn woman to see the light of your ways. And I'm hoping that this is the beginning of a long and beautiful friendship.

And Amazon, thank you for the flowers! And for bringing me cupcakes.