The demise of Harris Teeter

I love to cook, so I prepare most of our meals and therefore, do the grocery shopping. For a long time, Harris Teeter used to be my go-to grocery store. Their now steady combination of skyrocketing prices, diminishing quality and shrinking selection have me finally saying "enough and good-bye."

The HT produce selection is often inferior and, when there are quality items, they are just plain expensive. Their practice of putting items on sale only after having jacked up the "regular" price the week before is annoying. A $7 bag of rice on sale for $6.49 when its regular price was $4.99 a week prior is an irritating affront.

Their insistence on packaging meats in larger than necessary quantities is unacceptable. Ground meats routinely come in quantities of one and a quarter pound (when most recipes are by the pound) and chicken breasts come three to a package (too bad if you are a family of two or four). That's not helpful to people trying to shop efficiently; it's hostile to the needs of consumers.

Now they have reduced the available generic and store brands. I predict their demise is imminent.

I've found that we eat less when we are eating homemade meals cooked with fresh quality ingredients and The Fresh Market provides the proper combination of quality at a reasonable price. When a satiating meal is either $6 worth of fish sticks or $7 worth of fresh hook-caught flounder, there's no dilemma.

I shop The Fresh Market for fish not raised on a farm in China, deli meats and cheeses and quality fruits and vegetables, many of them organic at no premium, unlike HT where organic can add 30 percent to 70 percent to the cost. The Fresh Market's fresh meats are top notch, but need to be purchased on sale and frozen to be economical.

For things that come in a box, bag, jug or can (spaghetti, flour, orange juice, tuna, etc) Lowe's and Food Lion now suffice.