Portland's big-name little places close up
By BRIAN DUFF | February 1, 2006
The last few weeks brought two significant developments for downtown Portland’s grocery shoppers. While both developments are unfortunate, what’s sadder still is that it’s hard not to feel that each of them arrived with a certain inevitability — a gloomy testament to the current direction of Portland’s grocery scene.
In one case the Whole Grocer, the locally-owned store out on the edge of downtown on Marginal Way, was purchased by the Whole Foods conglomerate. Whole Grocer’s days have been numbered since Wild Oats moved in across the parking lot. With Whole Foods on its way to the neighborhood anyway, they were staring at an old-fashioned national-chain Malachi Crunch. The purchase appears to be the first step toward the Whole Grocer being absorbed into the massive Whole Foods location planned for a few blocks away off Franklin Arterial. While it’s never fun to see a local place taken over by a national chain, the truth is that Whole Grocer’s produce was too expensive already. Those who don’t mind paying $4 a pound for squash can take solace in the fact that this transition makes it more likely the new place will build off existing relationships with local growers.
A much sadder development for downtown Portland was the closing of the Greengrocer in the Old Port. The old Greengrocer was a near-perfect store. It was gourmet but completely unpretentious and mostly inexpensive. It was clean and friendly. It was cozy — you had to rub up against your neighbors to pick out your sprouts and such — but it had everything you needed. A stroll to Greengrocer and the Harbor Fish Market a few blocks away was all anyone needed for a weekend of great meals.
The soul of the place was the produce side. It was a passion for produce, and a conviction that it was possible to offer great produce at a reasonable price, that inspired Nick and Annie Witte to open the place fifteen years ago. In season they dealt with a host of local farmers; off-season Nick drove down to New England Produce Center in Boston. Back then Nick noted how rarely you can find good quality fruits, vegetables and herbs, and think to yourself “wow, that’s a pretty good deal.” That was exactly the thought that struck me the first time I wandered in to Greengrocer on my way to being a regular. That thought does not strike you anywhere else in town.
Greengrocer was great in other ways. The cheeses weren’t cheap, but they weren’t crazy, and there was always a friendly hipster behind the counter happy to let you taste what you liked. Wonderful bread and pastries were baked on site, and a few kinds of fresh sandwiches were on offer every day. Meaty olives soaked in big, industrial buckets. They were the only shop that sold Portland’s best chocolate bar, the Dolfin 88-percent cacao. When I kept buying out their inventory Nick was happy to help me find them in bulk. They had a selection of wines $6–$12 that was quirkier and better than any other shop around.
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