Life is good in Seattle if you love food. There is fabulous coffee everywhere, Tom Douglas keeps opening new restaurants, and we take our grocery stores very seriously. The new Whole Foods on Denny has just opened its doors, and there is a QFC in town that offers free, high quality child care (U Village). Getting food brought to you in the comfort of your own home, once a mere fantasy for the less-than-wealthy, is now convenient, practical, affordable, and organic.

I greatly lamented the demise of HomeGrocer.com those many years ago, and was surprised that no one seemed to rush in with a similar deal. Within the last few years, however, a couple of the big chain stores are offering delivery in the Seattle area (Safeway and Albertsons). They aren't the stores that I would normally shop at, though, and I'm not willing to change the eating habits of my family simply for the sake of convenience.

Then along came Pioneer Organics with their nifty service and I knew I'd found something special. As the name suggests, they deliver fresh organic produce to your house once a week. They've really worked hard at eliminating a lot of the complaints that many folks have about the box o' veggies delivery model that some organic farms offer. Does everyone in your house hate brussels sprouts? You can let them know, and they'll never include them. Each Friday before your delivery day they let you know what's coming and you can change your order if you don't think you can use that bunch of beets this time around. You can also add items that aren't included. Best of all, they've expanded into a full-blown natural grocery store. You can get all-natural peanut butter, dairy items, canned goods, even bacon, all brought right to your door every week.

Other things that set Pioneer apart? Wonderful recipes, a dedication to a healthy lifestyle both for the planet and for its customers (they incorporate alternative energy trucks and vans into their delivery fleet, for example), and an easy to use, informative website. But what about the produce? It's fresh, lovely, and delicious, just like you would pick out yourself. You may be tempted to stay in the house until Spring.

Pioneer Organics
Home Delivery Service
www.pioneerorganics.com
Type in your ZIP code to find your delivery day and browse the yummy selection!

Janeen Armstrong - is a 40-something Seattle single mom who's found that the best love affairs are often with places rather than people. A Seattle native who has also lived in Mexico, Chicago, and Vienna, she can parallel park like nobody's business.

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