Over the weekend, Justin and I ventured off to explore unknown territory in the name of grocery shopping. We started at The Fresh Market. With prices soaring for essentials like candy and coffee, we decided that the likeliness of returning was probably zilch. (Maybe for the okra chips?!) Next stop was Alon's Bakery & Market.
As we walked up to the store located off of Ashford-Dunwoody Road, we sensed we were at the wrong place. Classical music emitting from the entrance as well as tables and tables of happy customers made us feel like we had stumbled upon a very expensive restaurant. Being a bit broke this month after ipad purchases and car fixes, we nearly turned around. Luckily, we didn't. Instead, we made our way past the tables and through the doors to such a sight! And the smell!!
I don't know how Justin felt, but for me it was quite literally love at first smell. :) You see, Alon's is set up like an outdoor marketplace (except that it's indoor) with booths of different types of food. One of the first booths is that of freshly made bread. I didn't get a picture, but there were piles and piles of baguettes, round loaves, square loves, and even samples of cinnamon babka. You would walk up to the counter and order whatever bread you wanted. You could even place orders to pick up at a later date! (I'm guessing they sell out of bread rather quickly before holidays.)
The bread station was not the only station to whet your appetite though.
There were also beautiful desserts and freshly made hot cups of coffee. Or if you aren't in a dessert mood, you could venture up to the deli and have them make you a beautiful sandwich using some of their fresh bread or get an order of pasta (which I assume is either also made there or imported from somewhere exotic like Italy. Does Italy count as being exotic?)
While short on vegetables, fruits, and overly processed canned goods, Alon's definitely seemed to have a strong hold on baked goods, pastas, desserts, and cheeses.
If you live in the area, I definitely recommend taking a trip to one of the two Alon's locations! You won't regret it!
