Last evening I went to the first “Walk, Talk & Taste” at the new Columbia City PCC Natural Market. While I am a little sad about the closure of my usual PCC in Seward Park, it really was too small and didn’t have enough parking. The new Columbia City store is a dream!
I admit I went to this event more for the Walk and Taste than for the Talk, which really didn’t tell me anything that I didn’t already know (but then again I do have my master’s degree in nutrition). The tastes were lovely: smoked salmon, house-made quinoa salad and guacamole, Ellenos Greek yogurt (let’s just agree to call this Crack Yogurt), and a selection of fresh produce (fennel, red pepper, heirloom cherry tomatoes, strawberries and blueberries). There was also water infused with fresh ginger, which was lovely.
One of the things I’m most excited about is the bulk oil section. Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), canola oil, coconut oil, plus other liquid items like grade B maple syrup (the best, in my book), local honey, and so on. Why am I so excited about this? Let me tell you something: there is no better way to discover that your organic EVOO from Costco has gone rancid than to make a batch of mayonnaise with it. Nasty, nasty, nasty! Even though we go through a lot of olive oil, I think my days of buying it at Costco are over. I’ll stick with smaller quantities, and I think bulk is the way to go.
My eyes lit up at this cheese section (this is only about 1/3 of it), as well as…
…the kombucha section. They also have kombucha on tap!
As much as I love Pok Pok’s delicious drinking vinegars, I think I’ll restrict myself to having on as a treat when I’m actually eating at Pok Pok in Portland, at these prices (although it’s cool that you can buy them in Seattle at all).
They have a nice little sauerkraut and kimchi section (love those probiotic-rich, fermented foods), but again, the prices are giving me a little nudge to make my own.
Apparently, a lot of people have difficulty believing that the foods carried in the PCC delis are house-made, so they decided to make the Columbia City kitchen open and viewable to shoppers (it’s the only store that has an open kitchen).
I prefer to make my smoothies at home, but they do have a good looking smoothie menu. They also have a yummy-looking taco and pizza bar, as well as a general salad bar and hot bar area (which the Seward Park store had zero room for…literally, zero).
Beautiful flowers, too. I’ve shopped briefly at the Columbia City PCC since it opened a little over a week ago, but it was fun to get an official tour, as I noticed a bunch of things (now filed away for future reference) that I might not have noticed when I was shopping with a list and a clear agenda. And the tastes were great, too. Mmmmm…Ellenos!
