These are the folks in the brown aprons (here at the Symphony location anyway) and brown hats- where necessary- who will answer your every question, lead you to the product you cannot locate, and share stories with you about why one product may be better than another.  So, how do you bottle trust?  Can this faith that you place in our Team Members be harnessed or packaged or somehow made available to everyone?  We think we’ve come up with a way to do so and we’re calling it “100 Forks”.

At regular intervals, in each of our stores across New England, we assemble a group of us to view, touch, smell, and taste products from throughout the store, some new, some which have been available for years.  This week’s session may feature tuna salad from our regional kitchen in Everett, a fish chowder from Cape Cod, cheddar from the UK,  a new bread from our Bakehouse in Medford, French lemonade, and, yes, herbal cough medicine.  We all gather ‘round the table and evaluate each product on our own: no talking, please!  The scoring sheets are collected and tabulated and the results sent on to the Regional Office in Cambridge.

Then, all of the ratings from all of the Team Members in all of the stores are combined.  In my imagination, I see chunks of cheese, bowls of soup, tuna sandwiches, glasses of juice, and cups of tea standing around wringing their hands and trying to remain calm as the winners are announced-

“Today, we are happy to award the Whole Foods Market North Atlantic Region’s 100 Forks designation to…”

The program kicks off on March 1^st.  You’ll need to come in and check the aisles for this sign.  Don’t forget to let us know what you think! 

Things have changed over time.  My mom is still celebrating with us but my dad and grandparents have passed on.  My sisters live in New Mexico and California now so Christmas Day is a constant series of phone calls and emails and text messages.  The biggest difference though is the holiday season itself.

As our country has come to include so many people of so many different cultures and the world has been made so small through television’s ”breaking news” and the internet, the holiday season itself has grown from just Christmas to encompass a variety of occurences and celebrations that I, as an 18-year old waking up my 4-year old sister, could never have imagined.  Working in a food environment with people from distant areas of the world with diverse faith backgrounds and differing culinary traditions has broadened my appreciation for this witner season and has also increased the level ancticipation for me each December.

My “candy cane” world is still filled with Christmas carols and nativity scenes but now embraces menorahs, the values of Kwanzaa, an appreciation for Winter Solstice traditons, and more.  Whether we celebrate any one, none, or all of the many winter holidays and observances- Christmas, Hanukkah, Solstice, the Hiijri New Year- hopefully, we can rejoice and be a part of the wishes of peace and joy and goodwill of the season.

So, on behalf of all of the Team Members here at Whole Foods Market- Symphony, I am still excited to wish everyone a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Boxing Day, Happy St. Stephen’s Day, Happy New Year, or, more simply, Season’s Greetings, at this most wonderful time of year!

This, of course, got me thinking about the fact that this is the part of my job I like most of all.  I really enjoy the planning and budgeting process for donations and sponsorhips and events both in and out of the store.  The best part though is the thank you, the appreciation, the “I’m so glad you are here” that follows with most of what the Marketing Team at Whole Foods Market does.

Some of the theatre go-ers mentioned some of the other events at which they had seen my store or another local Whole Foods store- Taste of Cambridge, AIDS Walk Boston, Taste of the Nation, and various walks and races.  It seemed as though when one person mentioned something and another person heard, that other perosn had another instance to share and so it continued.  I was amazingly happy the entire hour I was there!

So now I’d like to take this opportunity to talk a little about the groups my store had the opportunity to help out recently.  Obvioulsy we work a lot with the various colleges and universities which surround us.  Last month we provided gift cards to the Wentworth Institute of Technology to use as incentives in a staff ftiness program there.  New England Conservatory was running a fundraising phonathon; we helped them with some prizes for students.  The Latino/a Cultural Center at Northeastern needed 100 apples and caramel for a Halloween event for kids in Dorchester and Roxbury; those apples and the caramel wrappers came from our store!  We also gave 2 cases of peanut butter to the Circle K group at Northeastern to be used for a project to help feed some of the city’s homeless men and women this winter.

Two hundred freshly-baked cookies from our Bakery were enjoyed by kids at the Fenway CDC Halloween Party before the Safe Trick or Treating event they sponsored.  Many of those same kids came to the store in costume for sweets; some even chose a box of raisins over the gummy candies!

We donated gift cards for the March of Dimes, the Mission Grammar School Harvest Fest in Mission Hill, and the MSPCC After School Program in JP, and provided refreshments for volunteers at the Lung Cancer Alliance at the Pru.  Our store also spearheaded a regional donation from most of the stores in MA plus Portland, ME, which resulted in nearly $1200 for auction prizes at the Children’s Hospital Champions for Children event which raised more than 2.2 milliion dollars!

Last but not least, the folks at Fenway High School learned that they might need to cancel their annual pumpkin carving event due to lack of funding this year; fortunately we were able to give them 10 pumpkins and the event went on as planned.

Many of these things may not seem like much but judging by the number of “thank you’s” I’eve been hearing and reading, I know they mean a lot to those who are revceivng them.  The old saying about “every little bit helps” seems to be very much the way thing are today. 

Back to the pumpkin pie at the theatre.  I was starting to pack things up at 7:30pm when the play was about to begin and two women ran in, showed their tickets to the usher, and ran up to my table.  ”Are we too late to buy a piece of pie?” they asked.   I replied that there was no charge and that they could indeed try some.  One of the women mentioned that she had participated in a Health Fair at the South End Community Health Center earlier in the day and that someome from Whole Foods at been there with pilaf and some other things and that she had missed out on the pumpkin pie.  I sort of just stood there holding up a Whole Foods Market pinted napkin for a minute until she finally looked up and saw it and realized that I had been the one providing the goodies at the health fair, too.  She then thanked me.

I slept really well that night.  Ok, it was a long day and I was tired.  Most of all though I slept well because I was had been thanked by so many grateful people.  Remember, that’s the best part of my job!  Oh, yeah, and the pie was good.  In fact, in was very good, extremely delicious.  I ate a leftover slice for my dinner when I got home.

Note:  Click here to be taken to the community section of our web page.

The “instead” is to talk about the things that I remember each year as preparations begin for our involvement in the next walk.  First and foremost I think about friends and acquaintances who have passed away from AIDS, especially Jim, my partner’s former roommate, one of our best friends, and an overall amazing guy.  Of course, it saddens me becasue we miss Jim but then all of the pleasant memories of AIDS Walk Boston and the WFM sponsorship make me happy again as I know that I am doing something and that the company of which I am a Team Member is honoring so many of its Core Values through its support.

The members of the Whole Food Market family who are in some way assoicated with this project are many.  First, at the regional office are the coordinators and VP’s and everyone who tell us to “go for it” and be there the first Sunday each June!  Then, there in the same buliding on CambridgePark Drive, is Gail who works faithfully and unceasingly to be sure we’ll have enough of our suppliers involved so that walkers have plenty of snacks when they finish.  We’d never make it to the Esplanade without her help.

Our distribution center in Cheshire, CT, is where all of our participating suppliers ship all of their products to be given out during the Wellness Festival after the walk is finished.  Rick, Andrea, Nina and the team there expertly receive and sort all of the boxes and bags and pallets when they arrive the first week in June and make certain that everything is loaded on the Whole Foods Market trailer many have become accustomed to seeing on Storrow Drive on Walk Day.  (One gentleman told us that seeing the WFM truck makes him feel like he’s “home”.  I’m not exactly sure what that means but it sounds pretty good to me.)

There’s one more WFM Team Member who needs to be mentioned here.  That goodie-filled trailer truck doesn’t get from Cheshire to the Esplanade by itself!  I’m not sure anyone else could navigate the low bridges and twisting lanes of Storrow Drive quite the way Alex does.  Yeah, it’s probably pretty exciting for him to have that State Police escort at the end of his journey as he approaches the Hatch Shell, but you can tell that it’s his dedication which fuels him the rest of the time.  You see, he doesn’t simply drop the trailer and run.  From the time he arrives until the time he leaves, Alex is the man in charge! 

He coordinates the unloading of products and their delivery to the tent as if he’s been doing it forever.  The rule is that no one gets into the truck but Alex and he’s careful to enforce it.  Volunteers line up with arms open and carts ready to carry everything to our partners in the tent awaiting their products to make ready for the walk’s end and the start of the festival.  We’d never survive the day at the Esplanade without Alex’s help.

Who else?  Can’t forget Tommy from the Wellesley store who decided he would head up our walk team this year.  Rising extremely early many mornings, he attended 6am meetings at stores far from his to rally for participation- and then went to Wellesley for a full day’s work.  Tommy succeeded in getting walkers from an assortment of our stores-

Sometimes I think i have the easiest job when it comes to AIDS Walk Boston.  I simply coordinate the dedicated suppliers Gail has already signed up and figure out who gets which table.  Then, I run around taking photos while other Marketing Team Members (this year, Jen, Kirsten, Rodney, Tina, Eddie, Tommy again. And, thanks to Lynay and Nick) make sure folks have everything they need.  You guys make everything so easy.

I’ve been talking about suppliers; who are they you ask?  They’re our vendors who donate to the Walk for the privilege to give out their products.  This is already too long but here’s this year’s list- Clif, GoodBelly, Gaga’s, Immaculate Baking, Zico, Cabot, Polka Dog Bakery, Late July, Tribe Hummus, Nature’s Path, Rick’s Picks, World of Grains, Stonyfield Farm, QBel, Quorn, Pop Chips, Grandy Oats, Olivia’s Organics, and Applegate Farms.  Again, we wouldn’t get through the day without them.

So what I would have said in my email to a few people I’ve turned into this “instead” which anyone with internet access can read.  Yeah, it’s pretty long but there are so many people to mention.  I’m done for now- but, this morning, my thoughts did turn to Jim as I walked down Boylston Street and crossed Clarendon on the way here…

I’m a local.  It’s true.  I’m actually one of the few people I know who’s actually from here.  Ok, the ‘burbs but only 20 miles away.  We’re not talking people here though; we’re talking food!  But still there are plenty of delicious products grown, made, baked or otherwise created within 20 miles of the store- and, even more when you consider that our WFM definition of local includes all of New England.

This Friday, May 15th, from 5pm until 8pm, we launch our “I’m a Local” program for the summer.  It centers on local produce but also takes in all of the fine jams, sauces, desserts, cheeses, beverages, baked goods and all the other tasty foods from the six states in our corner of the country.  To celebrate, our store will host nine food artisans from Maine and here in Massachusetts.  We’d love to invite you to sample locally-grown lettuces, squash, carrots and such, but the vegetables won’t really begin to come in until next week when we receive our first deliveries of the season from Atlas Organic Farm in South Deerfield.

Fields at Atlas Organic Farm.

(We do have fiddlehead ferns from the banks of the Connecticut River and Backyard Beauty tomatoes from Madison, ME.)

Instead, please join us and sample the creations from these fine folks-

• delicious sauces from Sassy River in Billerica
• fresh chevre from Crystal Brook Farm in Sterling
• fresh salsa by Nahant’s LaMarissa (check out our Demo Guru JP)
• Akara Beancakes from Sunderland
• salad dressings and dips from Cindy’s Kitchen in Brockton
• naturally-sweetened Tommy’s Naked Sodas (Brighton)
• New England beef with DennyMike’s rubs and marinades (York, ME)

Top it all off with sweets from SwissBakers in Reading.  And, finally, take home a treat for your puppy from Polka Dog Bakery right here in the city.

See you Friday.

Anyway, what I was thinking was what if you wanted to do both and were trying to figure out what it would cost you which leads me to a plug for our Double Dozen of Roses for just $19.99.  You can find this and our other specials on our store web page by clicking on the “specials” icon in the upper right hand corner-

If you got the two dozen roses, Mom will love more than your siblings… joking.  It’s not a competition.  The main thing is that you’d have extra money leftover to take her to brunch.  Dad, too, if he’s in town.

All of this aside, I am actually going to recommend that you prepare brunch at home for your mother.  Whether you live alone in a fabulous loft in the South End or with 2 or 3 roommates in JP, I really think Mom would appreciate a home cooked brunch more than restaurant food- especially considering all the meals she’s prepared for you!

You’ll find hundreds of recipes on our web site.  Choose a few simple ones or choose one complex dish and roundout the meal with a couple easier “sides”.

Whatever you prepare, I think you should try to include this amazing coffeecake.  It was developed as a “healthy makeover” in response to a Whole Foods Market customer inquiry and posted on our national blog.  Click on the photo for the recipe.

So, come get the roses and maybe go with simple scambled eggs, cage-free, of course, and bacon or sausage, and perhaps a simple salad of assorted cut fruits- berries look really good today- AND the blueberry coffeecake.  Let us know how things turn out.

After looking at the coffeecake photo and the recipe, I’m thinking of cancelling my reservation.  Happy Mother’s Day!

8:00am    Wake up, shower, check the news and weather.  Eat part of fresh fruit cup I got at Whole Foods last night.  Good thing they make them there fresh everyday!

8:20am    Hoping for a tweet from WFM_Symphony.

9:00am    Head out the door

9:15am    Meet friends at Whole Foods- Symphony for breakfast.  They have French Toast with Maple Syrup and Bacon and Broccoli Quiche and those great Breakfast Burritos…  and Iggy’s Bagels.  Did you know they hide the little cream cheeses and butter pats by the cream pies?  Almost forgot coffee!  Allegro Breakfast Blend the other day; today????

9:30am    Eat breakfast oustide just staring at the “Husky Card” sign.  I’m glad they got the chairs and tables back out here.  I was tired of sitting on the concrete by the windows.

3 for $10.00

9:45am    Run back inside the store for Newman-O’s on I saw on sale, apples, and water for later.  Other guys are still trying to fiugre out which muffins to get- Glorious Morning or Corn or Apple Streusel.

10:30am  Arrive on Boylston and wait for the runners.  Getting hungry again.

10:45am  Open the Newman-O’s and pass ‘em around.  Drink water.  Eat an apple.  Hand out the rest.

10:55am  Wondering why no WFM_Symphony tweets.  They must not be on Twitter today because of the holiday.

11:00am  Out of food.  Back to WFM.  Pizza’s ready.  Should I get that?  What soups are good?  No soup tweet today.  OK, pizza it is!  Love the “by the pound” price.  I always ask the guy for three dollars’ worth :-).  And a 365 Cola.  Should I have gotten lunch for everyone else?

12:00pm  At the register.  Gumdrops look excellent.  Grapefruit flavor?  Meyer lemon?  Acai?  Pomegranate?  OK, grab a container.  Pizza for me; gumdrops for the rest.

12:30pm So many people out here.  Crowds everywhere.  Got to get back to Boylston to see who wins.

1:00pm  Almost there.

2:00pm  Made it.  I missed the winner?  Where is everyone?  I’ve got pomegranate gumdrops.  Mmmm… worth tweeting about!

2:30pm  Back at Whole Foods in search of what to make for dinner.  Guess I have time to cook.  Deli looks really tempting.  What are all these yellow signs!??!?!?  Madness?  What the-?  Steak tips $4.99?  Beef.  It’s what’s for dinner.  I’ve heard that somewhere before.

2:40pm  In produce now.  Got my steak tips and a bunch of asparagus and some Olivia’s Organic crunchy salad mix and heading for Bakery.

2:45pm  Focaccia!  2 for $5.  I only need one.  That’s just $2.50.  I’m a mathematical genius.

3:00pm  On my way home with a bag full of dinner.  Can’t wait to tweet about this.

You know by now that this might have been written by someone before it actually happened or maybe it didn’t really happen but we think it most likely did happen or may happen to someone.  Anyway, you, too can follow our store on Twitter.com.  We’re WFM_Symphony.

“I can’t believe how much your seafood costs!” 

“Why is your produce so much more than ____?”

“The pasta salad at your stores is so good but why is it higher than down the street?”

Rather than focus on product differentiation here and the fact that our pasta salad is prepared in the store with pasta we cook and vegetables and a dressing and doesn’t arrive in a “milk carton” container or the fact that our seafood is delivered to us 6 days a week from our own facility in Gloucester, I am going to talk about an event which happens periodically at our stores and is very heavily promoted on the radio.  So, in case you take the T to work or walk or listen to your iPod instead of the radio, I am letting you know that it’s time for the Whole Foods Market

You’ll find avocados at 5 for $5- that’s $1 each for those who are mathematically-challenged- and sirloin tips for $4.99lb.  Mike from our Meat Team says the tips make great fajitas!  Anyway, I challenge you to find products of the same quality at a lower price!  The sirloin tips are $3 off our regular price and $2.30 a pound lower than I saw elsewhere on my way to work this morning.  OK, you may find a deal on avocados on Saturday afternoon at the Haymarket but I guarantee they won’t be as large or in as good a shape as ours.

Continuing, we’ve got extra virgin olive oil from Italy and some sweet and tasty bay scallops plus pasta primavera, crostini, and in-store baked focaccia!  The cool thing is that this sale lasts for two whole weeks so you can stock up over time.  Plus you don’t need a card of any sort and you can purchase as much as you need- so everyone wins… like in the shouting contest my friends enjoyed before Madness began!  (Note:  please call ahead if you need to purchase cases of a product.)

At this point, I assume I’m temporarily out of danger of being beat up for the price of beef at my store this coming weekend.  On second thought, I may not see many of the “Let’s trash the prices at Whole Foods” crowd until the Madness Sale ends.  Chances are they’ll be shopping or enjoying a homemade meal of beef fajitas with fresh guacamole; hopefully, by the time they are done eating, I’ll have access to specials for May.

Before we begin planning for dinner, I’ve got two Easter treat ideas for the kids-small or big as the case may be.  Sandra Rhoads of Starlight Creatives in Lynn makes the most amazing all natural, sugar cookies we’ve ever seen or tasted!  Each “theme packet” contains a large and several small hand-decorated treats which will please any child.  Or, choose a chocolate bunny or eggs from Lake Champlain Chocolatier in Burlington, VT.  Easter Shopping Hint:  The selection of both items will be better if you arrive sooner.

Back to dinner.  Although not everyone does, many folks plan Easter dinner around a ham or a leg of lamb so we’ll start in the Meat Department.  If you want to go with a ham, we offer both Wellshire Farms and Niman Ranch.  Looking at the hams, the Wellshire looks more like what my mom prepared for us but I’ve tried the Niman and have to say that it’s lean and tasty.  Unfortunately neither of these is produced in the local area but in places like Iowa and Michigan and Minnesota.  That’s still a little closer than our featured lamb which is from New Zealand.  It’s very tender and is delicious with traditional rosemary and mint preparations.  My final answer here?  Call the store at 617-375-1010 or come on in and talk with Steve or Mike, our Meat Team Leader and Associate, or any member of the team and ask them questions and hear what they have to say!  Ask them for recipe ideas!  These guys- and gal- know what they’re talking about!

Now for the local touch!  Whether you choose ham or lamb you could start with a pasta course the way we Italians do.  Who cares if you won’t be hungry by the time the main course is ready?  Personally, I’d prefer a plate of NJ’s Severino Ricotta Stuffed Shells with Pomodoro & Basilico made right in Somerville by Tessa and Paolo at Sauces ‘n Love.  If you prefer soup, why not try one from our Prepared Foods Department?  Two suggestions:  Carrot & Fennel Bisque or Spring Vegetable Orzo.  Both of these are expertly made at the Whole Foods Kitchens in Everett, MA.

You can serve the salad whenever you’d like; Italians sometimes serve it last- just before dessert.  But can there be such thing as a local salad for Easter when the holiday falls so early in April this year?  Yup.  We’ve got Olivia’s Organic Salad Mixes which are packed locally in Chelsea so to me they seem to stay fresher than the others.  Slice some Backyard Baby Tomatoes from Madison, Maine, and top with your favorite Vermont-made Drew’s All natural Salad Dressing.  Don’t have a favorite yet?  Now’s your chance then.

When that ham or lamb roast is ready to come out of the oven, be sure to have some fruit spreads from Deborah’s Kitchen (Littleton, MA) ready to serve along side.  Deborah, who concocts these recipes and makes them herself in small batches with real fruit and a little sugar and no high fructose corn syrup, suggests the Peach Melba or the award-winning Pear Lime Limbo with lamb.  This is definitely not your grandmother’s Mint Jelly!  I personally think the Apricot Joy would complement a baked ham- either on the side or in a sandwich for lunch on Monday- which would, of course, be made with a local rye bread from When Pigs Fly (York, ME) or Nashoba Brook Bakery (W. Concord, MA).

The day would not be complete without a slice of our famous Easter Egg Cake from the Bread & Circus Bakehouse in Medford.  We’ve got many designs to choose from- all made with real butter and eggs without any artificial colors!  And, to end the meal on a local note make your coffee with beans roasted in Acton by the George H. Howell Coffee Company (GHH) or Jim’s Organic Coffee in W. Wareham.  On Friday, April 10th, between 4:00pm and 7:00pm, Nathaniel from GHH will be here doing a coffee tasting.  Stop by if you can.  Oh, yeah.  did I mention that the Easter Egg Cakes are on sale through Easter Sunday for just $13.99?  That’s $6 off the regular price of $19.99 so buy two and freeze one for Patriot’s Day!  After all, cake is cake.

As I was writing and this was becoming longer, I started thinking about those who might not be celebrating Easter or those who can’t/don’t/or hate to cook.  What will they do?  Another Easter Shopping Hint:  Call us at 617-375-1010 and order a pizza; It should be ready to pick up within 20-30 minutes.  And you can surprise the pizza people by checking the menu online ahead of time!

Whatever you decide, have a Happy Easter… or a Happy Sunday.

I don’t about you but Spring Madness came to our store just in time for me.  If you haven’t already picked up a couple of pineapples at 2 for $5.00 or Split Chicken Breasts for $1.99 a pound, there’s still time as this round of Madness runs through March 31, 2009.  Hey.  And no frowning when you see that the chicken in still on the bone; this actually makes for a tastier end result.  Roasted Chicken Breasts with Romesco Sauce is a recipe you can try next weekend-

(By the way, the recipe photo shows the chicken served with green beans; I acutally bought some today to use in a stir fry tonight with tofu, asparagus, broccoli, and peanut sauce, since they looked really good.  Could spring be on the way?  Maybe?)

And, there’s more than this Madness thing I mentioned!  We’ve still got our weekly specials which are outlined in the flyer available at the front when you enter along with our new flyer for Whole Body, Whole Body Buys!  Both of these flyers run from Wednesday through Tuesday.  Our own 365 Everyday Value brand provides great products at great prices; these are usually highlighted by green-colored More of the Good Stuff for Less tags on the shelf.  Last but not least is the Whole Deal which is filled with money-saving coupons for national brands as well as our own brands, budget conscious recipes for one, two, or four people, plus sasonal savings and other value-themed ideas.  The new issue will be in our store on April 1, but you can still check out current recipes online.

At Whole Foods Market, we know that price is very important but we like to think of value as a combination of price, quality, and amazing customer service.  When you come in to the store it’s hard to miss the bright yellow madness promotional materials and the yellow and red/orange weekly specials and the bright green Everyday Values.  If you cannot locate a flyer or a flyer special or a Madness special or anything else you are looking for though, remember to always ask a Team Member.  Nothing is special or a good deal if you can’t find it!