Hands up if you hate doing groceries. If you get road rage pushing your shopping cart through the aisles. If you've ever voluntarily cleaned your house just so you could avoid a trip to the grocery store. I can admit to all of these. Something about big box grocery stores drives me absolutely up the wall, whether it's the crowds of aimless shoppers, the sub-par produce (I'm being nice here), or the meats of questionable provenance... I can't handle it.
So I'll let you in on a little secret: I haven't done groceries in years. Not that way at least. And no, I haven't resorted to a diet of canned beans and takeout either! I've been doing almost all of my groceries online. I've tried several grocery sites over the years and today I'm introducing you to my hands-down favourite: Eating Well Ottawa.
Launched in 2013, Eating Well Ottawa is an online service that makes grocery shopping easy instead of irritating. They carry fresh, organic, non-GMO fruits and vegetables, as well as milk, eggs, locally roasted coffee, fresh baked breads, a slew of pantry items like beans and nuts, and even a growing selection of well-sourced meats. They offer weekly delivery boxes priced at $30, $45, and $55, or you can customize your very own box with their à la carte items. Organic almond butter for me, please!
I've been using their service weekly since about February and I love it, so I had to share it with you. This week I caught up with founder Brendan Gorman to find out more about this fantastic local business.
AMYIN613: Hi Brendan! Tell me a bit about yourself: have you always had a passion for food? What drove you to found Eating Well Ottawa?
BRENDAN: When I was 15 years old, I was offered a professional soccer contract in the Netherlands, and I went on to play for some professional clubs in England and the United States. From there, I was recruited to St. Lawrence University in the United States on a soccer scholarship. Here, I captained the men’s soccer team and completed a double major in Mathematics and Economics with honours. Unfortunately, in my third year of University, I severely tore my ACL and meniscus and as a result had to retire from university and from my professional soccer career.
AMYIN613: Wow. That must have been quite a shock. What happened next?
BRENDAN: After recovering from my injuries, I began focusing all of this attention on what I could do to improve the local food system in Ottawa, as well people’s attitude toward eating healthy and living better. I attributed a lot of my successes to the manner in which I ate and I have always known that my accomplishments in the athletic world were achieved from my clean eating habits and my passion for nutrition. I’m a true believer that you when you supply your body with clean, healthy foods you perform at your true potential. This holds true whether you are playing a sport, performing at work, or concentrating on your school studies. In other words, when you eat well, you live well. And so, I created Eating Well Ottawa.
We strive to source produce as locally as possible and firmly believe in the local food movement and promoting the local farming community. I also created Eating Well Ottawa to change people’s perception on organic produce and the price of clean eating. I have been developing a system where customers are able to enjoy the benefits of organics while simultaneously saving money and time.
AMYIN613: I can attest to that, your prices are incredible. On that note, What makes Eating Well Ottawa different from other grocery delivery services?
BRENDAN: We're different than other grocery services because:
We have the lowest and most competitive prices
We have the largest variety of organic produce of anyone out there, and it's guaranteed to be fresh
We deliver to many more areas of Ottawa (and even to Quebec) than other delivery services
We do not lock people into contracts, we want our customers to be able to enjoy the convenience without feeling the burden and stress of contracts
We have a huge selection of grocery items, pantry staples, meats, eggs, and dairy, and are continually adding more and more products
We have a guarantee on our service and products which means if you are not fully satisfied, we will refund you fully and always go the extra mile to ensure you are satisfied
AMYIN613: What’s next for Eating Well, anything new on the horizon?
BRENDAN: We have many plans! We will be adding lots of new products to our site in the next few months, and we're continually listening to feedback from our customers and meeting with local producers to make sure we have as many great items as possible.
Later this fall we'll be launching our new website, which will have a number of helpful new features and services -- they're secret for now! And I'm happy to say that on the new site, all our products will feature a wealth of information in addition to the existing descriptions: we'll be providing full nutrition information, details on where the product came from, and more. We want to be as transparent as possible with our customers and instill trust!
GIVEAWAY
Brendan has generously provided an Eating Well Ottawa grocery box packed with $100 worth of fresh fruit, veg, pantry items, and more, and you can win it! Here's what to do:
TO ENTER
1. Like Eating Well Ottawa on Facebook.
2. Like Amy in 613 on Facebook.
3. Post a comment below telling me what you'd most want to see in your Eating Well Ottawa delivery.
Contest closes on Thursday, October 29, 2015 at 4:00pm EDT, and I'll announce the winner shortly after that. Good luck!
PROMO CODE
Because Brendan and his crew are so awesome, I've got a promo code for you! Even if you aren't the lucky winner of the giveaway, get 20% off your first Eating Well Ottawa order when you enter promo code "eatwell2015" at check out. Happy shopping!
All images courtesy of Eating Well Ottawa.
UPDATE
We have a winner! Sarah Rice wins $100 in organic, awesome groceries delivered to her doorstep by Eating Well Ottawa. Thanks to all 84 of you who entered and I hope you'll try Eating Well! Remember to use promo code "eatwell2015" to get 20% off your first order.