Fred Meyer is more expensive than Whole Foods! Amazing, but true. Champagne like Veuve Clicquot is $5 more expensive at Fred Meyer than at Whole Foods. At present, Parmigiano-Reggiano is $18/lb at Fred Meyer and $16/lb at Whole Foods.
To make matters worse, the products sold at Fred Meyer are of dubious quality. I bought some Parmigiano-Reggiano at Fred Meyer a few weeks ago and when I unwrapped it at home, I was surprised at the rubbery yellow tasteless lump of cheese I got. I'm a cheese aficionado and love Parmigiano-Reggiano; I have even toured a factory outside Bologna, Italy so I know what Parmigiano-Reggiano is supposed to look and taste like. Where were the characteristic markings on the rind? Where were the calcium crystals that dot a properly aged Parm? This wedge from Fred Meyer that bore its name certainly did not pass muster.
I returned that night to Fred Meyer to return the cheese I had bought. The employee kept insisting it was indeed the genuine article, so I asked to see the wheel that it was cut from. Then the employee said it may have been mislabeled and finally refunded me the cost of the "cheese", but did nothing to reassure me that it was in fact Parmigiano-Reggiano.
The label for Parmigiano-Reggiano was also erroneously labeled "DOC" or Denominazione di Origine Controllata, a Protected Geographical Status label used only for wines in Italy. Italian cheese is protected by Denominazione d'Origine Protetta (DOP). Therefore, technically, they could claim they are not actually misrepresenting some ordinary cheese as Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Genuine Parmigiano-Reggiano has to come from a region in Northern Italy and its quality assured by the Consorzio Parmigiano-Reggiano. The genuine article also bears the characteristics mentioned above, as well as other hallmarks that authenticate its provenance. Perhaps the cheese I got from Fred Meyer was erroneously labeled as "Parmigiano-Reggiano" or perhaps it was a lower-quality of Parm than what I'm used to.
It's not only the food at Fred Meyer that is expensive, but also other products sold there. The KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer is $299 at Fred Meyer, after a "price reduction." But this is the everyday price at Williams-Sonoma, the high-end home goods retailer. Everybody thinks that Fred Meyer is cheap, but actually they are not. If you buy cheap items (e.g., Korbel) and pay less for it than for a quality product (e.g.,Veuve Cliquot), are you getting a deal? No. Items like the Parm cheese, Veuve Cliquot and KitchenAid mixer are the same price or more expensive at Fred Meyer than at other stores. This is the real comparison. So when comparing oranges to oranges and apples to apples, Fred Meyer is more expensive than other retailers. read more