The capitol building in Boise. This is not the co-op.
On June 12, 2014, I visited the Boise Food Co-op in Boise, Idaho. I had just finished walking around downtown Boise, cruising the rose gardens at Julia Davis Park, and enjoying the history lessons at the Idaho Historical Museum. I was thirsty and hot, and walking into the cool co-op was refreshing. There were tons of plants (flowers and vegetables) surrounding the front doors to the co-op. I was pleased with the amount of plants they had for sale.
I must admit, this co-op reminds me a bit of a Whole Foods in that it is huge and beautiful and has a lot of products available. However, it’s friendlier and a thousand times more fun than a Whole Foods. Boise’s co-op has huge selections of cheese & dairy products, juice, smoothies, produce, alcohol, and everything else you’d want from a grocery store. What I was really impressed with was their deli: they have a huge deli where you can buy sandwiches, soups, juices, smoothies, salads and more, all made right in the store. You can order these at the deli counter OR you can find pre-packaged amounts of all of their deli items for sale in the store. It was the best deli/grab-n-go situation I’ve ever seen at a co-op.
Fortunately, I ran into my good friend Andy, who works at the Boise co-op. We chatted about the co-op; he informed me that they had recently gone through an audit with the NCGA (National Cooperative Grocer’s Association), so the store actually has less product than it had before, and was re-organized in a more inviting way. I was in awe; I thought the co-op was gorgeous and I loved the variety of products.
I ended up not buying anything here because my friend was getting off, and we decided to go have a beer at a local Basque restaurant/bar. But I am still looking forward to my next visit to Boise and getting one of the Boise Food Co-op’s delicious smoothies made by co-op angels. If you are ever in Boise, a stop here is definitely worth it!
Artist On The Road 