Foods We Love from FreshDirect
A recent post about Heath Ledger’s grocery shopping habits sparked a FreshDirect debate in the comments. Now, we understand that FreshDirect trucks cause pollution and traffic as they creep from block to block and idle in the street. Perhaps the trucks that only stop at the supermarkets are less of a nuisance, but in our…
A recent post about Heath Ledger’s grocery shopping habits sparked a FreshDirect debate in the comments. Now, we understand that FreshDirect trucks cause pollution and traffic as they creep from block to block and idle in the street. Perhaps the trucks that only stop at the supermarkets are less of a nuisance, but in our humble opinion (for which we are prepared to take a beating), sometimes FreshDirect can be pretty awesome. For instance, you can’t get a 4 pack of their Parbaked Chocolate Croissants ($4.99) at Met Foods, and while they’re not as chocolatey and flaky as the Mazzola variety, they’re as good as you can get without changing out of your pajamas on a Sunday morning…
Same goes for their Parbaked Black Olive Loaf ($3.99) — it’s not as crusty as Caputo’s but sometimes your local bakery closes before you get home from work, so it’s nice to have this waiting in the freezer. We paired our last loaf with 1 pound of linguine, 2 packages (or 2 pounds) of frozen Mussels with Tomato & Garlic Sauce ($8.99 each and way better than you’d expect), and some extra tomato sauce — and served a seemingly gourmet dinner for 4 without spending more than a few minutes at the stove.
The produce probably won’t measure up to your local greenmarket, co-op, or CSA, but FreshDirect does support some local farmers. We recently ordered Macoun apples from the local Red Jacket Orchards ($3.79 for 4), and they were incredibly juicy, delightfully un-waxy, and all-around delicious. We’ve also found some good deals in the wine and beer department — like a 6-pack of Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout for $9.99 and a bottle of Pop Cultured Lorikeet Sparkling Shiraz for $10.
To be fair, we weren’t thrilled with a recent order of slightly fishy Tortilla Crusted Tilapia ($5.99/lb), but we’d definitely re-order the Wild Alaskan Coho Salmon ($11.99/lb).
Does anyone else have other FreshDirect favorites that they’d recommend — or other items to avoid in the future?
Photo by leah jenni
my issue with the fresh direct is their minimum order for some fruits and veggies is way too much for a single person to manage. i cannot eat three pounds of grapes or whatever before they go bad– i just lose interest. though i generally prefer to shop as i need things, i find fresh direct to be great for staples, frozen goods (which are generally cheaper than in the grocery store) and drinks– i.e. stuff that is hard for a person without a car to buy all at once and then try to lug home.
i’d recommend their fresh squeezed juices, which are great and cheaper than what you’ll find in the grocery store. their rosemary sourdough rolls are super yum, too!
as for this met food hoopla, i’ve been shopping in that place for years. that was a fluke. i can’t believe anyone would avoid the store because of a on-off. now, avoiding it for the sub-par produce, that i understand…
Fresh Direct saved my life. Well, not literally, but they certainly were there for me in my hour of need (ie, when I had a month-old colicky baby and a sprained ankle and a husband with chickenpox on the fourth floor of a walk-up). They carry Seventh Generation brand diapers and wipes (and beer), and they carry the stuff up the stairs. That’s all I care about, really. Fresh Direct rocks.
I have only ordered from FD once because it is over my budget, I prefer to choose my own produce, and am lucky enough to work near the greenmarket, but I loved their fresh-ground peanut butter with honey. Sctually having tasted it at a friend’s house is what prompted the order in the first place.
I love freshdirect. Alas they don’t deliver to much of North brooklyn as yet. But I order to my office and lug it home in two days.
I agree the tortilla crusted tilapia was a bummer. The fresh tilapia filets with a seasoned rub was great – just onion and a little olive oil and dinner was ready in 8 minutes. The fresh fish from Trinidad was also excellent.
The codfish cakes with tomato soup is really good. Not spicy enough for this west indian gal, but good enough still. I can doctor it.
Try the breaded coconut curry chicken. It’s good.
And the Maya Kimal curry sauces.
Good for you, anon 12:23. You keep on going to the Met. Hope that goes well for you and there’s no other “random incidents” while you’re there picking out your crappy produce in your self-righteous state of mind.
Sounds like silly juvenile knee-jerk reaction. Avoid MetFood because of that hostage drama out front.
Random incident by mental case- that could have ended just easily in front of any other place on Smith or any other street.
Frankly could care less if anyone orders from FreshDirect… just not my way of shopping .. which is to pick something up on way home…don’t do big shopping trips.
Especially since there was that shooting/hostage situation in/near the Met on Smith St. recently (not to mention bugs in food I’ve bought there) I really avoid them like the plague.
I love the fact that when I order from FreshDirect, I don’t have to deal with being run over by shopping carts and strollers, banged into with shopping baskets, snapped at by a cashier and mauled by rude shoppers with screaming children while paying a fortune for shoddy produce.
And don’t forget the elderly who can’t lug heavy groceries or are homebound in bad weather. FreshDirect provides a valuable service, and I doubt that their trucks exacerbate pollution in any discernible way. Remember this is a city.