The great Store Wars saga.

The Whole Foods Corporation presented a sort of choice to the Mid-City community this week: the finalists for taking over the Mid-City location are Matassa’s Grocery and Lakeview Fine Foods. There does seem to be some cynicism surrounding the issue as Robert of Fair Grinds (an open-minded and fair fellow as many would agree) writes:

Moving on from the disappointing way Whole Foods handled the “community review” aspect of the Esplanade store sale, I am hoping to focus on more constructive community building activities than the one we just participated in so disappointingly. As everyone seems to say around here, at least we’re getting a grocery!

One last attempt to be in control of our own voice in this decision is to complete yet another survey, this one a “vote” of sorts for a particular store and a take on some aspects of how it should run. Look for it in e-mail soon, or come by Fair Grinds for a hard copy.

So if you want to voice your opinion and participate in this survey, swing by Fair Grinds and have a look.

The Times-Picayune published a lengthy profile of the Terranova Brothers Superette, the corner grocery across Esplanade from the now-closed Mid-City Whole Foods Grocery. How will this store weather the opening of a new grocery across the street? Judging from their history, they could be just fine.

The Terranova family has owned and run that location since the 1920s, and in that time a host of stores has come and gone in the property across the street. Whether they can coexist with the (as yet undetermined) replacement for WFM will be influenced greatly by the kind of store that moves in. If the new tenant has a Whole-Foods-like feel, then the Terranovas will still have a niche where they can succeed. However, the family may face a greater challenge if the new store more closely resembles Matassa’s or LakeView FineFoods.