Mark K. Sullivan’s Blog

Amazon has come out with a fresh groceries in the Seattle area.  It’s a pilot program called AmazonFresh where they provide fresh food (meat, dairy, vegetables, fruit, etc) for delivery or pick-up.  Lee & Sachi tried it recently and on their recommendation, I tried it as well. 

First impression: AWESOME!  The whole experience is painless and a little bit better than shopping at a real store.  The list of products is extensive and they will likely have what you want (but maybe not the brand you want).  I found everything I needed, plus a few things that I didn’t need.  I’ll break down the pros and cons to help you out.

Pros: 
• Delivery is free (if you purchase certain $$ amounts)
• Saves time by allowing you to click a few buttons instead of driving to the store
• Quality of produce is exceptional
• Can purchase small amounts (1 bulb of garlic, 1 onion, etc)
• They deliver it within a 1-hour window during the day, or deliver it to your doorstep before you wake up (by 6am)

Cons: 
• You have to purchase $25 for free early morning delivery or $50 for free daytime delivery
• Can’t purchase food for tonight’s dinner, tomorrow is the earliest delivery time.  (Note: you can order up till midnight and still get delivery by 6am)

I ordered food last night and scheduled it for delivery this morning (Thanksgiving day no less).  I only ordered $27, so I got free early morning delivery. Around 4:30am, I woke up from the TV noise (yes, I fell asleep in front of the TV) and checked to see if my delivery had come.  Sure enough, I had 3 plastic crates outside my door.  Each crate had a tamper-proof plastic tab on it.  Inside the crate was a styrofoam cooler with reusable ice-bags.  I will put the crate, cooler and ice-bags outside my door the next time I expect to receive an order, so they can pick it up and reuse it. 

In the 35 degree November morning, the food was never in jeopardy of going bad (being in a cooler with ice).  When I unpacked my groceries, everything was perfect.  The eggs were unblemished and the eggplant had no dents or bruises that all eggplant seem to have.  I don’t know where they get this exceptional produce from, but I think it’s better than grocery stores just because they want to prove to customers that online purchases can be trusted.

I’m definitely a believer and if you live in Seattle, give it a try…. since you’ll be pleasently surprised by what you get and how easy it is to get it. https://fresh.amazon.com