YES!!! Fresh Market is high end in that they offer items that are not available in most supermarkets, such as exotic cheeses, seafood, fine cuts of meat, and a huge selection of organic products. They are, however, expensive.

When I want top quality produce, meats, seafood, cheeses, I go to Fresh Market.....

One just opened here a few months ago. It has some of the best food in town.

Pluses: very good seafood and meats, lots of organic produce. Lots of olive oils, nuts, coffees. Good baked goods; artisanal breads, rolls, ridiculously sinful desserts. Pretty good pre-made stuff like rotisserie chickens and various cold case salads. If you don't want to cook one night, you could easily pick up a rotisserie chicken and some sort of pasta salad...

Cons: very much an upscale market. Unless you're pretty well off you'll probably just use it for special stuff and not as your primary food shopping source. You'll see something reasonable (say, boneless skinless chicken thighs for around $3 a pound) and a few feet away you might see Chilean Sea Bass for $22 a pound.

Decent wine selection.

All in all, I'm glad it came to our town, but I would prefer a Trader Joe's.

This post was edited by arley on Sun, Sep 22, 13 at 14:54

We have one about 20 minutes from us and I usually stop in when I'm in the area. About the only thing I consistently buy there is flowers. The floral dept. in our Fresh Market is excellent, with good value for the price.

The Fresh Market is the Mini-Me of Whole Foods.

I first stumbled onto it while in Miami, some years ago. And I posted about it here. Sorry I couldn't find the link, but there were some, rather passionate, opinions on that old thread.

Years later, a FM opened near me in Grand Rapids, MI., and while even smaller than its Florida cousin, they carried everything under the sun. I liked their bakery, wines, meats, cheeses, seafood...well, let's just say, the list of things I disliked was much, much shorter (sadly, the MI. store is now closed).

To recap, The Fresh Market is all about high-quality with matching high prices.

Sol

We have a few here, and I much prefer it to Trader Joe's, which has pretty much nothing I want. But that's comparing apples to oranges.

Fresh Market is expensive, but I can usually find things there I can't find anywhere else. I like their bakery and their fresh meat has always been fresh.

For me it's an occasional market , food for special meals, or special foods I crave.

Enjoy

Like Sol, I shopped at the Grand Rapids Fresh Market. Unfortunately, it could not stay in business, I believe because of the location, smack between GB Russo's and the fancy pants upscale Meijer with their own wine expert.= and huge cheese department. Fresh Market had the highest prices by far, but I did buy a few things there that I couldn't get elsewhere. I was sorry to see them leave.

Annie

Well it sounds like it's worth getting excited about. There's plenty of money to be spent around here (not my block, but surrounding areas) so that shouldn't be a problem if the quality is really there. I'm slowly becoming disenchanted with another "higher quality" chain in my area, so I welcome the competition.

Do watch for their weekly or daily specials. In our area they tend to be on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Their coffee was on sale a couple of weeks ago at buy one get one free. That came to a very reasonable $6 a pound for whole beans.

Ditto whole pork loins, buy one get one free. And sirloin steaks, buy one. . . .

You get the idea. Watch the sales.

This post was edited by Bellsmom on Sun, Sep 22, 13 at 20:03

Love The Fresh Market for the ambiance alone, sipping the free coffee samples and just wandering around. I've never bought anything bad there and the bread is great.

Dcarch, I hear you. It's not the cars I mind, it's their drivers. Just this past week I saw a man in an older Jeep get into a screaming match with someone in a Range Rover, I guess he didn't bow to her superiority appropriately even though he was the one going out of his way to give her room. After he took his spot in a far corner of the parking lot near my pickup, I sympathized by telling him that the Fairway parking lot is 50% to blame for my HBP. It's all about learning their schedules so you can avoid them. They're worse in the store than in their cars.

Fresh Market is truly on my wish list, but reality says I have to settle and be happy for a new BJ's Wholesale. Living in a fairly small town does have it's drawbacks!

FOAS, I once had a "showdown" with a woman going the wrong way down a mall parking lot. She was important and driving a very fancy and new import. I was driving Dad's old Chevrolet Quad Cab 4x4 pickup with the full sized box. Guess who won, LOL.

dcarch, we owned a 1997 Chevy Cavalier for several years, we sold it last year. It was the cheap car that Elery bought to drive back and forth from my place to his while he was still working. Paid $2,000 for it, and it got 35 MPG and ran like clockwork for 4 years. Great car, but my mother refused to ride in it, she said she was embarrassed. (grin) She has a newer Impala that she requires us to drive if she's going anywhere as she doesn't like Elery's 1994 Chevy pickup and isn't comfortable in the Jeep. We parked the Cavalier in the middle of all the Cadillacs, BMWs and Lexus' while on a winery tour and that was the last straw. She never rode in it again.

Annie

Annie - If you still have that pickup come drive it to the Gold Coast of Long Island. You navigate through the parking lots, I'll film. The next reality tv sensation, Annie-Boo-Boo!

This post was edited by foodonastump on Sun, Sep 22, 13 at 23:32

The Trader Joe's catalogs make it all sound so good, but when I get there it's all more boring than anything else.
I used to go for the cookies in a tub that were exactly like the old Pogens, but of course, they've been discontinued.

As a former employee I can assure customers that it mostly lives up to it's name. Fresh Market beats out Whole Foods price wise ,but make no mistakeyou must be prepared to pay for the best meats on the planet, produce bakery and isle goods . The average customer is sheud, critical and knows product. Some items have been discontinued, instead of bran muffins you get "Cake" with a 1/2 tsp. of bran!! Employees turnover monthly as they need a separate salary for closing ( shift differential) . Managers are wonderful and hard working. Fresh market is an event and a place to chill in a clean atmosphere. I made $8.25 hr after working at $28.00 hr plus OT sotoo spoiled to deal with the ridiculous.

I also find it similar to Whole Foods, expensive, and you will still have to go to a regular grocery store for many things that they don't sell. That said, it's nice to have one close for specialty ingredients or products.

Fresh Market does not seem to have stores west of Ft. Worth, Texas, but in California we have Sprouts, which I think is probably similar. The one in Culver City is very close to me, but I prefer to go to Bristol Farms, which is in Westchester and a bit closer. I also like the seafood market at BF - it is like a mini version of Santa Monica Seafood Market, which is a pain to get to because of SM traffic and tight parking.

I never expect to find everything in one store, and last week-end we went to Marukai in Gardena (because we were already in Torrance for something else), and it was a bit of an ordeal. It's the largest Japanese market I've been to, and it was a bit difficult to navigate through the store. I prefer the one in West L.A., which is much closer to me and not so crowded.

sign up for Fresh Market weekly flyer. Pricey but everything I have bought there has been wonderful. I go monthly to get abx free chicken breast and ground chuck.

Love, love, love Fresh Market. Everything there is top quality imo~ I go there all the time. I love their fresh flowers, cards, deli (try the strawberry and tuxedo cake, omg tdf), grilled sandwiches, wings as well as fresh meats and veggies. I could go on & on & on. Not to mention the atmosphere is very nice. Really a nice selection of everything. I really like their orzo salads. They also have great recipes on their website! And the people that work there are really nice and helpful, that always helps!!!

It's the most beautiful food store I've ever seen. I found myself staring at the vegetable arrangements. It's been years since I've been there because it's pretty far away, but they did have some of the best Kona coffee I've ever had. I wish there were one closer to me.

I went to one in Kalamazoo when I was there visiting a friend. Whole Food lite, seemed like to me. I was looking for a specialty item they didn't have, but I can vouch that they have an extensive selection of refrigerated acidophilus products, albeit not the one I was looking for. I could not afford to get anything else. About the only other thing I am willing to splurge on in an upscale market is coffee or soda pop made with real sugar. I'm not crazy about meat so the cheapest source of protein available at the store is fine by me, and as for fresh produce, I am spoiled by Michigan's farm markets and don't buy expensive imported stuff out of season anyway. The only things I buy organic these days are soy products and corn products and potatoes, all because I want to avoid GMO's. Also canola oil, but I quit using canola oil for the most part anyway. I do miss a nice deli, but I tend to spend more than I should when I live near one like I did in Allentown. When you are single and make a nice salad combo, it tends to become "meh" on you faster than you can eat it up, so you end up wasting nice ingredients. It was all I could do to steer clear of the deli section at Fresh Market. And yeah, the flowers looked nice, which always makes me sad thinking of lost opportunities to get a bouquet for my mom.

We have a Fresh Market. I'd much rather have Trader Joes, although I will give the Fresh Market points for the fact that they'll sell you a single slice of bacon, if that's all you want.

Don't care for their meats so much. Chicken is just factory-farmed at free range organic prices, and the steaks are the silly giant bricks like you get at a fancy steakhouse, but usually not prime. I've come to much prefer a nice thin cut like the South Americans and the old Florida Crackers liked, but I can't imagine the look on one of their butchers if I were to say, "Can you slice that in three, horizontally?" They would probably do it, though.

Typically I shop Fresh Market for specific things ... organic produce, coffee beans, Eat Well Embrace Life hummus, and a few other things. Dh likes their pumpernickel bread. Same thing with Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. I keep running lists for all of them along with Albertson's and WM.

If your not well healed don't go there. if you eat at Golden Corral you might not want to shop at Fresh Market! They offer free sample coffee requiring refilling of 2 quart canisters every 1/2 hour!! Samples available of certain items. If you haven''t tried their salmon salad your a Democrate!...wow! Nice Lands End!!!

I

No shortage of well-heeled shoppers by me, but I guess they didn't take to FM. Frankly I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did - not quite 3.5 years - as there was barely anyone in there any time I went. I'll miss their frozen peas.

There is a Fresh Market about 25 minutes away. I stop in when I shop at my favorite clothing store.

I like their sushi. I have tried a few of their boxed baked goods and have not been impressed. That said, there are lots of things to try and I wish one opened near me.

We had a Mrs Greens open and close within a year. With Whole Foods less than 1/4 mile away, I didn't think they would do well.

FOAS, we still have the full sized 1994 Silverado, and I can still face down a Lexus in any old parking lot, LOL. Kind of like that movie with Kathy Bates where the young girls say they are younger and faster when they steal her parking spot. She beats the heck out of their Volkswagon Beetle with her old/big car and remarks that she's older and has better insurance. (grin)

Our Fresh Market has been "replaced" by a Fresh Thyme, which I like a lot. Lots of organic produce, gluten free items, bulk foods, great bakery, good prices. right across the parking lot from Sur La Table!

Annie

There us a Adam 2 miles from my house. Their rotesserie chickens are better than Kroger's or Whole Food's. Bakery I'd very good, meat department is excellent, produce dept is good. All their stores are rather dark - heck, I'm not dining in the place, but grocery shopping! Prices are higher than Kroger. I don't care much for their prepared food and the people behind that counter consider customers a nuisance that interferes with their dishing up foods. Help at mine never lasts very long.

Their arrival put the final nail in the coffin of a local market at the end of my street. I'll never get over Doll's Mkt closing! I now go to 2-3 stores to get what I could get at the end of my street, plus they delivered. Such a shame. If FZm closed tomorrow, I wouldn't really miss it; it's just easier to get to than Whole Foods. I. Not a fan of Trader Joes unless I want a prepared, frozen dessert which my body does not need.

Interesting about Fresh Markets closing in some areas. Ours is still always jammed, although they keep reducing and reducing what they carry. I hardly ever go there anymore.

I shop at Fresh Market for the music! Regular grocey stores always have some woman wailing over the PA. Not a pleasant exerience.

There are several things that I shop for there, but sadly they've discontinued their pretzel rolls. Loved those.

Annie, Fresh Thyme is the same co. as Sprouts in Calif and Arizona. We have a Fresh Thyme in Chicagoland and Sprouts in Arizona where we go in the winter. Great store and good prices.

Fresh Market hasn't made it to my area. We only got a Whole Foods maybe 4 years ago. There are a few things I'll buy there - GMO-free corn items, San-J brand gluten free Asian condiments, coconut palm sugar, Yukon gold potatoes since I can buy them individually rather than by the bag, fresh beef liver since unlike other free range grass fed liver, it isn't already frozen in over large 1 pound lumps that I'd never eat before it went bad. I also get butter there, and dark meat chicken is usually on sale. I'll also pick up exactly the amount of say, shredded coconut I need for a recipe, as I don't need it often.

Fish and free range eggs are horrendously overpriced at my Whole Foods. And there's a lot of junk food that pretends to be healthy.