Because I lived in Austin, Texas and near Lebanon-Hanover, New Hampshire I was used to shopping in Central Market, Whole Foods and the Co-op. I purchased excellent quality foods that were good value for the dollar for the most part. And I splurged as needed.

I started commuting to Shreveport, Louisiana and had to find a local grocery store to feed me. I began my reconnaissance of the local grocery stores.

Store A is a smallish grocery store conveniently located ¾ mile from my house and serves a mixed socio-economic neighborhood of historic homes. No matter what I would go in there for all I ever come out with was a can of Folger’s and a bag of dog food.

This store specializes in fat, starch, sugar, alcohol and over-priced fresh orange. I was going to starve to death shopping here.

Next I test drove Store B which is 4 miles from my house. This is a grocery store for what was the Shreveport everyman. I began my exploration of the store and was immediately disappointed. There was no variety, no organic foods, no bulk, no nothing. I was so damn depressed. I consulted some locals and they directed me to Store C.

Store C is located 3 miles from my house and serves a higher end socio-economic group. In this neighborhood the houses are beautifully massive and the squadrons of giant flying cockroaches are called water bugs.

I made my trek to Store C to see if this grocery store was going to meet my needs. It has fruits and vegetables, some imported items, organic meat and vegetables and my staples. There is produce that I would consider a staple in Austin that is 3 times the price in Store C so I do without. But still out of the three, Store C was the best suited to my needs.

So you would think the post would stop there:

• Explore your grocery store options
• Pick the grocery store best suited to you
• The End

I thought that was the end too. But a friend, who lives 4 blocks from Store C, told me she was shopping in Store B. I was floored as I had seen what was in her fridge and it looked nothing like what I had seen at Store B.

So BACK I went to Store B. It was fabulous. They had been undergoing renovations for months. I walked into a beautiful produce section immediately hitting a wall of organics that were only pennies more expensive than the regular produce.

Green peppers were $0.99 each at Stores A and C, ORGANIC green peppers were $0.99 each at Store B. I try to stay away from the bakery but they had fresh baked cheese biscuits 3 for $1.00.

The prices are cheaper than Store C, the quality and selection are better than Store A. I was so happy I damn near burst into tears.

I now firmly believe that the choice of grocery store should be revisited annually.

The grocery chain marketing departments are constantly reassessing: what should be sold at each store, improvements and renovations, the pricing strategies, specials, etc. You never know when something is turning to your advantage in a different store.