Hieber's

Hieber's Frische Center is a very local supermarket. In fact, there are actually only 10 Hieber stores, all of which are located down in this, the most southwesterly corner of Germany. I never bothered to shop there, however, despite its very good reputation. Other supermarkets were always nearer.

Today, though, I cycled across town to the Weil store at the end of the afternoon to get a few "extras". What struck me first was the range and freshness of the fruit and veg on offer. Most "bog standard" German supermarkets tend to neglect this freshness aspect. Any British expats reading this would probably agree with me that people are spoilt by the selection and quality of supermarkets in the UK. Nevertheless, what you don't expect are swarms of fruit flies buzzing around piles of bruised, sweaty and sometimes rotten tomatoes costing EUR 1.49 per kilo - a common occurrence at the supermarket across the road from where I live here in Weil. What a refreshing change it was today then to see pristine tomatoes, succulent strawberries, healthy-looking onions and a mind-boggling selection of potatoes. Hecky Nora, this sounds like a plug.

In the end, I bought more than I was intending to get, but I suppose it'll all keep. Places like that lure you into purchasing stuff you wouldn't normally consume. Like buying chili peppers. I hardly ever purchase chili peppers, but they were red and fiery and... well, I just couldn't resist. Oh, and a bottle of 2005 Weiler Schlipf Spätburgunder "CS" from Weingut Schneider.

Oh, and I heard some time ago that the Lörrach store has a system where people who are single and "on the look out" can take yellow baskets instead of the normal-coloured ones to signify their, ahem, status. How to find love in the supermarket aisles... I should give it a try one of these days.