One of my favorite things about the used car industry is auction food. Used Car auctions offer something for everyone to enjoy. Some people love the thrill of buying a car across the auction block. Some people love selling a car for more money than they expected. I love both of those things. But, sometimes things don’t work out too well at an auction. Sometimes, the market goes against you. Sometimes, you even lose money at an auction. But, there is one thing that is always consistent at car auctions. There is one thing that can always be counted on to be enjoyable, the Food . I love auction food. I love everything about it: the grease, the portions, the breakfasts, the lunches, everything.
I have always been a “cup of coffee for breakfast” kind of person, so it’s difficult for me to do a quality breakfast analysis. Nevertheless, if you are a lover of “country breakfasts,” the car auction breakfast is something you will truly enjoy. Auctions offer a wide selection of options for breakfast. These options include: biscuits and gravy, eggs, sausage, and bacon. Sometimes the eggs come out of a box and the food has been sitting under a heat lamp for too long. But most of the time, I find the breakfasts that are served at most auctions to be homemade and excellent.
Auction breakfasts are good, but lunch is where the real quality food is served. Some of my favorite dishes can be found at many car auctions. Auctions don’t serve fast food junk; they serve labor intensive, home-cooked meals like meatloaf or turkey and stuffing. Auctions also serve fantastic grill food, such as hamburgers, hot dogs, and french fries.
Out of all the auctions across the country, my favorite place to have lunch is the Manheim auction in Lancaster, PA. This auction is nestled in the heart of Amish country and offers some of the best “home-cooked” meals I have ever tasted.
Which auction do you think serves the best food? Is there a particular food that is exceptionally good at a particular auction you attend? If so, please share with us.
This biscuit, which sold at auction for $1,953, nearly made its way to the South Pole with explorer Ernest Shackelton in the 1907 Nimrod expedition.
Prestigious auction houses sell some of the world’s most sought after works of art, jewelry and collectibles.
But such extravagant items aren’t the only valuables to hit the auction block.
Some may think a 104-year old cookie is not worth more than a bad stomach ache, but for bidders at Christie’s in London, $1,953 was a price worth paying. The pricey biscuit nearly made its way to the South Pole with explorer Ernest Shackelton in the 1907 Nimrod expedition. The donned “Shackelton biscuit” is one of the latest unique food items to develop major interest in an industry mostly fueled by Monet’s and works by Piscasso. Designed to keep the crew’s energy up on their voyage, the biscuit was found perfectly preserved in a hut where Shackleton was based during the expedition. The highest price ever paid for one of Shackleton’s snacks was in 2001 when Christie’s sold some biscuit crumbs from his Endurance expedition for about $10,994.
Chris Longly, a director at the National Auctioneers Association said that believe it or not, there are people out there that would want a Shackleton biscuit.
The Art of Farming auctions off crates of locally grown heirloom vegetables to raise money and awareness for the local farming community.
“There is a market for it, it’s a unique market, but if it’s still intact there will be a value to it and there is a collectors market out there for everything,” he told FoxNews.com.
One delectable food item to make its presence among auctioneers, but one you can actually eat, is the Japanese Densuke watermelon. The crisp and sweet melon is exclusively grown on the northern island of Hokkaido, and was sold for $4,000 at an auction in Sapporo this past summer. Although the stripeless black ball of fruit racked in more than what most would pay, the priciest melon was sold in 2007 for about $8,100.
Another delicacy notorious for its high price tag is Italy’s beloved white truffle. Casino mogul, Stanley Hu bid $330,000 for a pair of white truffles in an international charity auction held last November. Though the distinguished truffle is oddly shaped and usually carries a strong odor, chefs and food lovers around the globe pine for its earthy and unique flavors. It is almost solely grown in Italy and northern Croatia for about four months out of the year (October to January).
“Auction houses are smart. They have an audience that wants to buy, has the financial resources to do so, as well as the desire to support a charity,” Lisa Mamounas, CEO of Culinary Insiders told FoxNews.com.
Sotheby’s auction house hosts an annual charity benefit for food enthusiasts. The Art of Farming (this year it was held on Sept. 27) auctions off crates of locally grown heirloom vegetables to raise money and awareness for the local farming community.
At $1,000 a crate, bidders can walk away with 15 different varieties of tomatoes as well as other unique produce like black cherry tomatoes, Turkish Orange Eggplant, Pink Banana Pumpkin and Lady Godiva Squash.
Collaboration meals with some of the world’s most costly and rare ingredients are also another popular way auctions raise money for charities.
For example, a blend of luxurious foods went into a single bowl of Pho--traditional Vietnamese beef noodle soup-- for the Bash Benefactor Dinner in Los Angeles. The bowl of soup --which got $5,800 on the auction block -- included A5 Wagyu beef, White alba truffles, noodles made out of blue lobster meat and foie gras broth. Proceeds for the exotic soup went to Children’s Hospitals in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco.
“Food continues in itself to be a growing trend and shows no level of slowing down,” Mamounas said. “I believe this is just the start of rarified historical foods being auctioned off,” she added.
Runner Janet Cool displays frozen meat during the grocery auction in Dallas, Pa.
updated 3/25/2009 2:09:58 PM ET 2009-03-25T18:09:58
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DALLAS, Pa. — Out of toilet paper? Need to pick up a few things for dinner? Take a number and start bidding.
Many bargain hunters these days are trading supermarket aisles for the auction circuit in search of deep discounts on everything from cereal to spare ribs. Past the sell-by date? Bidders are happy to ignore that detail if they're getting a good deal.
As consumers seek relief from the recession and spiraling food prices, grocery auctions are gaining in popularity as an easy way to cut costs. The sales operate like regular auctions, but with bidders vying for dry goods and frozen foods instead of antiques and collectibles. Some auctioneers even accept food stamps.
When Kirk Williams held his first grocery auction in rural Pennsylvania last month, nearly 300 people showed up. Astonished by the turnout, he's scheduling auctions at locations throughout northeastern Pennsylvania.
"Right now, people don't have a lot of spare pocket change," said Williams, 50, operator of Col. Kirk's Auction Gallery near Bloomsburg, Pa. "They're looking to save money."
Rich Harris, 28, who was recently laid off from his welding job, showed up at Williams' auction in Dallas earlier this month looking for meat for his freezer and snacks for his kids. With his wife pregnant with their third child, "I'm basically trying to expand my dollar right now," he said. "The deals, they seem to be fairly good."
Grocery sales make sense for auctioneers, too. Sales of baseball cards, estate jewelry and other auction staples have "fallen off a cliff," Williams said. He hopes to average about $12,000 in sales per auction, which would net him a profit of about $1,000.
The popularity of the auctions — which sell leftover or damaged goods from supermarkets, distribution centers and restaurant suppliers — comes at a time when people are stretching their grocery budgets by using more coupons, buying inferior cuts of meat, and choosing store brands over national brands.
The economic downturn, paired with the worst food inflation in nearly 20 years (grocery prices spiked in 2008 before easing in January and February), has caused a "seismic shift" in consumer behavior, said Brian Todd, president of The Food Institute, an industry information service.
"Food is one area where they can save," he said.
The increased interest has fueled growth in the auctions, which can be found in at least nine states from Oklahoma to New York.
Banana Box Wholesale Grocery, a Kutztown, Pa.-based food brokerage that supplies salvage grocery stores around the nation, has seen a marked increase in calls from auctioneers getting into the food business, said manager Greg Martin.
At Steve Schleeter's grocery auction in St. Mary, Ohio — where attendance has swelled in recent months — some regulars have told him they now do most of their shopping at the auction and only go to the store for milk and lunch meat. He estimates his customers can knock 50 percent off their grocery bills.
Cherish Francik, 42, who works for the Social Security Administration, said she wouldn't have been caught dead at a grocery auction or even a discount food store a few months ago. But the tough economy has turned her into a tightwad.
Now she brags to her co-workers about her frugality.
"Most of my life, I've been a brand-name shopper. It was a quick change for me, a real quick change," said Francik, whose haul from the Williams auction included trail mix, honey-barbecue chicken nuggets and a spiral-cut ham. "I guess it's sort of a thrill now to find something that tastes good and is the right price."
Inside the auction hall in Dallas, a small town north of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Williams uses a singsong, rapid-fire delivery to sell everything from frozen broccoli (six boxes for $2) to pork ribs ($20 for a 14-pound hunk) to candy bars (10 Baby Ruths for $2). Especially popular are the frozen foods — pies, bratwursts, chicken breasts, popcorn shrimp, whole hams, french fries.
Displaying an 11-ounce bag of cheese curls that retails for $1.99, the veteran auctioneer chants: "Dollar and a quarter, dollar and a half. Dollar and a quarter, buck and a half. Buck and a half, buck seventy-five."
His colleague, Roger Naugle, stops the bidding at $1.50.
"Who wants the cheese curls?" Williams says. "Down there, No. 17 wants two. No. 7 wants one. No. 33 takes two. Guys, who else? These are so good. Anybody else on the cheese curls? Anybody, anybody, anybody else? All fresh and in date."
As workers fan out with armloads of bags, Williams tees up the next item. And on it goes, for hours. Customers head to their cars balancing precariously overloaded boxes of food.
Some of the goodies have wound up here because they're out-of-date. But the auctioneers stress that they're still OK to eat. The Food and DrugAdministration does not generally prohibit the sale of food past its sell-by or use-by date — manufacturers' terms that help guide the rotation of shelf stock or indicate the period of best flavor or quality.
"There is not one thing in this sale today that Kirk or myself will sell you, that we would not, do not, will not, or have not taken home to our own families!" Naugle tells the crowd.
Linda Dennis, a group home manager from Wilkes-Barre, said she wasn't phased by the Feb. 9 sell-by date on a bag of frozen pizza bites.
CONCORD,
N.C. -- Like sardines, packed into a can, the tiny Bostic Auction House
in rural Concord brims with people the first Monday of every month at 7
p.m.
This is the monthly food auction.
Taking what seems like a million bids per minute, the frenzy is led by
Misti Bostic, who takes the podium, microphone in hand. Below the
platform from where she stands is a food distributor, describing each
of the hundreds of items available.
"This is Johnsonville summer sausage. We got three flavors."
Everything, from canned foods to frozen items, restaurant quality
chicken and steaks is available. The food comes from local grocery
stores or restaurant supply overstock.
"We have steaks, shrimp, canned dry frozen canning supplies, French
toast, breakfast foods, chicken -- anything you can think of buying at
the grocery. And it's about half price," said Bostic.
Several industrial-sized freezers and an entire storage room is needed
to house the food. While you will find a few dented cans and items just
past their expiration date, 90 percent of the food is the same quality
as the food you'll find at your local supermarket or restaurant.
The auction has been around for more than 2 years, and Bostic says she
doesn't really advertise. With food prices rising 4 percent
month-to-month earlier this year, that's enough advertising in itself.
"We thought why not auction off food? [People] did this 15 to 20 years
ago, and it died out, but as grocery prices started to rise, we started
up with food, and people thought it's a good idea, and it's grown
bigger and bigger," said Bostic.
Giant bags of frozen chicken (from restaurants that shall not be named
because they're so top secret) go for $14 per 5-pound bag. Fabric
wrinkle release spray with the price tag still on it goes for 2 bucks.
Same for the giant cartons of Folger's coffee.
But the crème de la crème of the evening is by far the 12-pound prime
ribs. These giant hunks of fresh, not frozen, meat usually sell for
over $110 at the warehouse club.
At the auction, the USDA prime meat goes for $69. Then, the distributor
feels generous, looks down at a sheet and determines the meat can sell
for $68. There are many cuts available, and anybody who wants one holds
up their number and takes the meat home.
LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Wm Morrison (MRW.L), Britain's
fourth-biggest grocer, will look into buying Iceland Foods as an
auction for a controlling stake in the frozen food retailer gets
under way, a person familiar with the situation said on Sunday.
Buying Iceland Foods, which analysts think could fetch
around 1.5 billion pounds ($2.4 billion), would lift Morrison's
market share towards rivals J Sainsbury (SBRY.L) and Asda
(WMT.N) and give a significant boost to plans to expand into
smaller format and convenience stores.
Morrison could face competition from Malcolm Walker, the
founder and chief executive of Iceland Foods who with other
managers owns 26 percent of the business, as well as other
supermarket groups and private equity firms.
Earlier this month, officials responsible for winding up
failed Icelandic bank Landsbanki appointed UBS and Bank of
America-Merrill Lynch to auction a 67 percent stake in Iceland
Foods. That decision was ratified at a creditor meeting on
Thursday, allowing the process to get under way.
Britain's four biggest grocers, led by Tesco (TSCO.L), have
all announced plans to increase selling space.
"It is all at a very early stage," said the person familiar
with the process, adding a timetable had not yet been set.
"It would be utterly remarkable if they (Morrison) were not
looking at it. They have all said they want to expand ... and
here is a rare opportunity to do so in a chunky way."
Morrison said it did not comment on speculation about
specific transactions.
People familiar with the matter have said Tesco, Asda and
Sainsbury would also be interested in the process, though they
may just be looking to buy parcels of stores.
Tesco, in particular, could face opposition from competition
regulators if it tried to buy the whole chain, while Sainsbury's
already has a large pipeline for its new stores programme.
Asda, the British arm of U.S. retailer Wal-Mart, is in the
midst of integrating its purchase of Netto UK.
Another potential bidder could be the Co-operative Group,
which has been integrating its 2008 purchase of Somerfield.
Malcolm Walker, who earlier this month climbed Mount Everest
to raise money for charity, made a bid of around 1 billion
pounds for Lansbanki's stake last autumn, a person close to the
matter has told Reuters.
The Sunday Telegraph newspaper, without citing sources, said
private equity firms Clayton Dubilier & Rice, which recently
appointed former Tesco boss Terry Leahy, Apax, Lion Capital and
BC Partners, were also interested in the auction.
MF Global analyst Mike Dennis said a bid involving Walker or
a break up of the business were the two most likely outcomes.
"The latter idea is difficult given the average store size
is (around) 7,000 square feet, too large for a 24/7 convenience
format ... but too small to be a viable supermarket," he said.
"The quality of sites is questionable and the locations
would not suit all the grocers but together Sainsbury/Morrison
could break it up and then maybe a deal could be made."
Iceland Foods runs around 780 stores. It has a 1.9 percent
share of Britain's grocery market, according to Kantar
Worldpanel, compared with Morrison's 11.9 percent, Sainsbury's
16.3 percent, Asda's 17.4 percent and Tesco's 30.4 percent.
(Editing by Dan Lalor)
($1 = 0.6161 pound)
Gourmet Festival and Auction planned for Sunday at NCC
Courtesy photo
A cake from Creative Cakes by Debby from last year's Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
Courtesy photo
A delicacy from last year's Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
Courtesy photo
A delicacy from last year's Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
Courtesy photo
The chefs from The Michael Timothy Group serve up dinner at last year's Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
WHITE CHOCOLATE CREME BRULEE
Courtesy photo
A cake from Creative Cakes by Debby from last year's Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
IF YOU GO
The Nashua Pastoral Care Center Gourmet Festival and Auction
WHEN: 4-8 p.m. Sunday, March 14.
WHERE: Nashua Country Club, 25 Fairway St.
COST: $100.
By ERIC STANWAY
Correspondent
The
old adage of “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” hardly applies
when you can enjoy delicious gourmet treats and still benefit the needy
in your community.
The Nashua Pastoral Care Center will
prove the strength of that notion as it hosts the 22nd annual Gourmet
Festival and Auction from 4-8 p.m. Sunday, March 14, at Nashua Country
Club.
Carol Connor, director of development for the center, has seen remarkable advancements over the life of the program.
“In the beginning, it was a fundraising
event where we invited local chefs to come and present their dishes,
and we split the proceeds,” she said.
This quickly evolved into a full-fledged
campaign, however, and local restaurants soon entered the fray, eager
to help out a worthy cause while strutting their culinary stuff.
“We moved the event to the Nashua Country
Club back in 1996,” Connor said. “We now have 21 restaurants in
attendance, along with the silent auctions that were instituted at
their time.”
The restaurants donate their time and
food, regaling the 250-300 attendees with their prized signature
dishes. The list is impressive, including some of the finest eating
establishments in the Nashua area.
This year’s venues include:
Celebrations Distinctive Catering,
Greenhouse Cafe & Catering, Michael Timothy’s Surf and Buckley’s
Great Steaks, Nashua Country Club and The Rustic Leaf Bistro.
Also, Tio Juan’s Margaritas Mexican
Restaurant, The Saffron Bistro, Villa Banca, Fody’s Great American
Tavern, Two Chefs are Better than One Catering, Sodexho – St. Joseph
Hospital.
Also, Creative Cakes by Debby, Swan
Chocolates, Patisserie Bleu, King David Coffee Roasters, You You
Japanese Bistro, Checkers Restaurant and The Common Man of Merrimack.
Michael Buckley, owner of three
restaurants in the area – Michael Timothy’s, Surf and Buckley’s Great
Steaks – has been a contributor for 15 years.
“We first got involved with the Church of
the Good Shepherd,” he said. “They basically introduced us to the
event, and we kept on doing it.”
Buckley sees this event as an opportunity to put a face on charity.
“We’ve been involved in the community on
a local level constantly,” he said. “We’ve been doing it every year.
It’s good to be able to help in a crisis.”
Although Buckley has participated in
charities on a national level, including clothing drives, he sees this
opportunity as something special.
“National charities are certainly
necessary, but this is different,” he said. “If you can’t help the
people you see every day, then you’re not really giving back.”
When asked about what he planned to bring to this year’s event, however, Buckley was at something of a loss.
“We try to mix it up every year,” he said. “We always have something new.”
The silent auction portion of the event
promises to provide a tantalizing number of prizes up for bid under the
supervision of professional auctioneer John Terrio. Among the prizes to
be had:
Southwest round-trip airline tickets; a
weekend ski package to Loon Mountain; a summer vacation package to
Attitash; Boston Red Sox tickets; New England Patriots tickets; an
African safari trip for two; a two-week stay in Apricale, Italy; and a
retreat and renewal package for one at the Kripalu Center for Yoga
& Health.
Connor said the Nashua Pastoral Care Center provides a number of vital services to Greater Nashua.
First is the Prevention and Intervention of Homelessness program, which helps with rent and tries to stop evictions.
“We try to keep people in their homes,” Connor said.
The facility also provides transitional housing for single mothers.
Additionally, there is the Crisis
Advocacy and Resource Education program, which concentrates on
medication and dental care for those who can’t afford it.
Finally, there is the Financial Literacy
program, which sponsors a seven-week session covering all aspects of
financial management.
The festival is presented by the center’s
2010 Silver Partners, Cityside Management and BAE Systems, and media
partners The Telegraph, Frank FM and WMUR.
Other sponsors include Law Warehouses,
Dartmouth-Hitchcock, The Nashua Bank, The New Hampshire Orthopaedic
Center, G.M. Roth Design Remodeling, First Colebrook Bank, Nashua
Community College, Edward Jones, The Hunt Community, Continental
Paving, Hampshire First Bank, Bellwether Credit Union and Apple Therapy.
“The stalling economy has really
increased the need for all of these services,” Connor said. “We’re
seeing a lot of people who are accessing these services for the very
first time.”
Buckley concurs that, in these tough
economic times, it’s vital that businesses come together and help the
less fortunate in their community.
“It’s nice to help people in your own backyard,” he said.
Here is one of his favorite recipes – and, obviously, a first choice for his customers.
WHITE CHOCOLATE CREME BRULEE
Serves: 4
1 pint heavy cream
3 ounces white chocolate
6 egg yolks
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Scald cream and add white
chocolate. In bowl, combine yolks, sugar and extract. Slowly add the
cream mixture to the yolks, stirring constantly. Place ramekins in deep
pan. Cook in water bath, covered with aluminum foil. Cook until set,
check after 45 minutes and then check every 10 minutes.
CONCORD,
N.C. -- Like sardines, packed into a can, the tiny Bostic Auction House
in rural Concord brims with people the first Monday of every month at 7
p.m.
This is the monthly food auction.
Taking what seems like a million bids per minute, the frenzy is led by
Misti Bostic, who takes the podium, microphone in hand. Below the
platform from where she stands is a food distributor, describing each
of the hundreds of items available.
"This is Johnsonville summer sausage. We got three flavors."
Everything, from canned foods to frozen items, restaurant quality
chicken and steaks is available. The food comes from local grocery
stores or restaurant supply overstock.
"We have steaks, shrimp, canned dry frozen canning supplies, French
toast, breakfast foods, chicken -- anything you can think of buying at
the grocery. And it's about half price," said Bostic.
Several industrial-sized freezers and an entire storage room is needed
to house the food. While you will find a few dented cans and items just
past their expiration date, 90 percent of the food is the same quality
as the food you'll find at your local supermarket or restaurant.
The auction has been around for more than 2 years, and Bostic says she
doesn't really advertise. With food prices rising 4 percent
month-to-month earlier this year, that's enough advertising in itself.
"We thought why not auction off food? [People] did this 15 to 20 years
ago, and it died out, but as grocery prices started to rise, we started
up with food, and people thought it's a good idea, and it's grown
bigger and bigger," said Bostic.
Giant bags of frozen chicken (from restaurants that shall not be named
because they're so top secret) go for $14 per 5-pound bag. Fabric
wrinkle release spray with the price tag still on it goes for 2 bucks.
Same for the giant cartons of Folger's coffee.
But the crème de la crème of the evening is by far the 12-pound prime
ribs. These giant hunks of fresh, not frozen, meat usually sell for
over $110 at the warehouse club.
At the auction, the USDA prime meat goes for $69. Then, the distributor
feels generous, looks down at a sheet and determines the meat can sell
for $68. There are many cuts available, and anybody who wants one holds
up their number and takes the meat home.
There is a 10 percent auction house charge on top of the winning bid,
but winners who pay in cash get a 3 percent discount.
MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) - Wayne Blair, who owns Blair Auction & Appraisal, LLC , auctions just about everything. But once a month food goes on the auction block in Muskegon. They also have a location in Dorr.
Blair started auctioning food in 2004. He told 24 Hour News 8 it is the best-kept secret because you can save 50 percent, sometimes more, off the sticker price of a product.
Blair's Muskegon auction was held Thursday. Bidders came in with boxes and coolers, scoped out the products, and then bid on the price. Most of the goods are name brand products bought at wholesale.
"This right here has a price unit $3.79. Typically this thing right here will go for a buck and a half, something like that," said Blair.
William Lincoln and his wife are regulars who buy for their whole family.
"We have a daughter that does daycare. We take stuff to her. Then we have another that's laid off. We take stuff to them too," said Lincoln who is from Muskegon.
It's a story 24 Hour News 8 heard from a lot of people at the auction.
"I have five kids and 11 grandchildren," said Barbara Barnes, also from Muskegon.
She says some live with her while others visit often. They all say the savings pay off.
"I can buy bulk and get it for at least 50 percent off," said Barnes.
"Last month I spent $200, but usually about $150," said Sandra Wilson of Holton.
She says she saves at least $100.
Times are tough. And when you have many mouths to feed, people say the auction is one place where you can cut costs.
Gourmet Food Auction announces the addition of Foods from Italy. These foods include Balsamic Vinegar aged from 20 years and older, procutto ham, pate’s, and more.
Visit www.gourmetfoodauction.com and place a bid and feel the victory of winning… The Ebay of food..
Now Gourmetfoodauction has added wing sauces, hot sauces and more with your favorite college team logo on the face of the bottle. Imagine having friends over and sitting there on the table is your favorite college team that will get the goat of the guests....
Submitted by Megan Matthews on Monday, January 10th, 12:21 pm
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(ABC 6 NEWS) -- Wedgewood Cove Golf Club and Estates is hosting its 11th Annual Gourmet Food Auction.
It will be held Friday, January 28, 2011 at 6 p.m. Social hour starts at 6 p.m., tasting at 6:30 p.m. The silent auction will run from 6-7:25 p.m. The live auction starts at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $20 each or two for $30. If you would like to make reservations call the Albert Lea Chamber of Commerce at 507-373-3938.
Some items in the auction include: a membership to Wedgewood Cove Golf Club, dinner catered to your home by Nelson's Marketplace, tickets to Minnesota Gophers Football Game, Razzy Retreat and Getaway Package from Northwood, Iowa, Clothing from 4 Seasons Advertising, etc.
Over the years there have been many variations of the popular song The 12 Days of Christmas. Chef Point Café has created their own version with a small twist; it is edible.
Chef Franson is always cooking outside the box and creating the most delicious dishes for their loyal foodies. Each month new items are added to the specials board and are available for a limited time. "We receive calls every week to find out if their favorite item is on the specials board. I love the Christmas season and this year wanted to give our fans what they have asked for," says Chef Franson. Each day a certain dish will be featured, and as in the song, all the previous days will also be available. Now for Chef Point's Christmas gift to you.
On the first day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 1 Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the second day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the third day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the fourth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the fifth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the sixth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the seventh day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the eighth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 8 Crab Cake Pastas, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the ninth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 9 Pepper Steaks, 8 Crab Cake Pastas, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the tenth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 10 Stuffed Artichokes, 9 Pepper Steaks, 8 Crab Cake Pastas, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the eleventh day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 11 Smoked Chicken Pizzas, 10 Stuffed Artichokes, 9 Pepper Steaks, 8 Crab Cake Pastas, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
On the twelveth day of Christmas Chef Point prepared for me, 12 Blackened Stuffed Pork Chops, 11 Smoked Chicken Pizzas, 10 Stuffed Artichokes, 9 Pepper Steaks, 8 Crab Cake Pastas, 7 delicious Pot Roasts, 6 Blueberry Pancakes, 5 Sexy Chickens, 4 Cioppino Soups , 3 Oxtails, 2 Bread Puddings and a Beef Shepherd Pie for me.
Merry Christmas from your friends at Chef Point Café, where fine dining is redefined. The café is located at 5901 Watauga Rd. - Watauga, TX 76148. Let Chef Point prepare your Christmas dinner and relieve the stress of cooking. Orders still being accepted.
BigCommerce has no design limits. If you're a beginner you can use our point and click customization tools and our drag-and-drop design mode to change the look, layout and functionality of your store.
Designers have full access to modify HTML and CSS using our web-based file editor or FTP. There's even a built-in diff tool to manage template changes quickly and easily.
Our live store showcase includes real live stores from some BigCommerce users. They've completely customized the design of their store using our powerful design tools.
Right from your store's control panel you can list your products for sale (BIN) or auction on eBay. You can see live listings and when an auction is won or a product is purchased, an order is created in your store automatically. No extra work needed.
You can set listings to go live right away or schedule them to go live at a future date and time. There's also no limit on the number of products you can list on eBay and relisting takes just a few clicks.
Drive massive amounts of traffic back to your BigCommerce store with point-and-click export to PPC websites Beso, BizRate, MySimon, NexTag, PriceGrabber, Shopping.com and Shopzilla.
It's multi-channel retailing on steroids and it's one of the fastest way to grow your visitor base.
Imagine this: someone buys a t-shirt from your online store. One week later they receive a 20% off coupon to buy a matching hoodie. Then two weeks later they receive an email with 20% off a matching hat.
All of this can be accomplished automatically with our integration to MailChimp.
Define rules to add customers and newsletter subscribers to your MailChimp lists based on the product, category or brand they've purchased then setup a few autoresponders in MailChimp and let the rest take care of itself. Eep eep!
Upload an unlimited number of product photos and display them in your store as a photo gallery. Thumbnail versions of your photos will be created for you automatically. Visitors can click a photo to see the larger version, which you can display in a popup window or in a lightbox-style window.
You can upload photos, specify the location of a photo on the Internet and even share photos between products. It's easy to display your products in their best light, resulting in more interest and more sales.
6SuperZoomTM Photo Zoom
Provide a crystal-clear, zoomed version of product photos so shoppers can get a closer look at what they're buying. To enable SuperZoomTM, simply upload a large product photo and BigCommerce will do the rest. SuperZoomTM takes your photos to the next level and increases interest in your products.
Mobile is growing fast and with dozens of different smart phones and Apple's iPad now on the market, the time is right for you to take advantage of mobile commerce in your ecommerce business.
BigCommerce includes native support for the iPad as well as a shopping experience that looks beautiful on all webkit-enabled mobile devices including iPhone, Andriod, Blackberry and Palm Pre devices.
A complete browsing, shopping and purchasing experience takes just a few clicks.
By displaying a "Shop" tab on your Facebook fan page, BigCommerce SocialShop lets your fans, prospects and customers click on a product to purchase it from your BigCommerce store. They can also share your products directly through Facebook as part of their news stream.
Sell products with different options such as apparel, computers, software and more. You can create as many options as you like, each with its own SKU, price, weight, image and stock level. You can also create configurable fields which the customer has to fill in when purchasing, such as engraving text for an iPod.
Track inventory on a per product or per product option level. Inventory is automatically reduced after a purchase (and added after a return, if enabled) and products become unavailable for purchase when inventory falls to zero. You can set low inventory levels and will be reminded to order more products when stock falls below this level.
BigCommerce has the most flexible, automated returns system you'll find anywhere. You can enable/disable returns and completely customize every aspect of the returns system including return reasons and actions.
Customers can login to their "My Account" page to place a return request and will be updated via email when it's processed. You can offer a refund, replacement, store credit and more. You can even use the permission-based user system to assign RMA responsibility to one or more of your staff members.
Use both storewide and item-specific tests to improve the conversion rate of your online store. Does single page or multi page checkout drive more sales? Use Google Website Optimizer to find out. You can run six storewide tests as well as per product, web page and category tests to try different on-page elements such as product name, photo, description and more.
BigCommerce includes everything you need to rank at the top of the search engines, including custom page title and meta details for products, web pages, categories, brands and news items, as well as search engine friendly links, W3C compliant / tableless templates, proper use of header tags, HTML/XML sitemaps and custom image alt tags.
BigCommerce has also been independently audited by the world's #1 SEO expert, Aaron Wall, whose feedback was used to further improve BigCommerce and therefore your chances of ranking highly in the search engines.
Easily create and display a promotional banner at the top or bottom of any page on your web site. Are you having a sale on all Gucci sunglasses for the next 7 days only? Create a promotional banner, assign it to the Gucci brand and set it to show for 7 days only.
Use promotional banners to advertise current specials, shipping discounts, coupon codes, special deals and more.
Easily create trackable coupons which give customers a dollar or percentage discount on their order. Coupons can be set to expire after a certain date or number of uses, and you can run reports to see coupon usage.
Customers can choose from a variety of gift certificate designs, which they can purchase through your store. The gift certificate is then emailed to the recipient and they can easily see their remaining balance from the "My Account" page.
The 2010 Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival presented by Food & Wine and Travel + Leisure and hosted by and benefiting the Food Bank For New York City and Share Our Strength is proud to host another fantastic online auction presented by Quinn & Co. with 100% of the net proceeds going to help these community based organizations fight hunger.
The online auction is live until October 15th. Visitors have a chance to bid on amazing dining packages, exciting getaways, insider experiences and many other luxury items.
NORWALK, Conn., Nov. 15, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Priceline.com (PCLN) today announced the availability of its popular Hotel Negotiator hotel room booking app for Android devices. The iPhone-compatible version of Hotel Negotiator, which was released in 2009, is one of the most popular free travel apps on the App Store.
The Hotel Negotiator app for Android features The Priceline Negotiator (William Shatner) and lets travelers use their Android devices to quickly find and book last-minute hotel rooms using priceline.com's Name Your Own Price(R) hotel service and save up to 50% over published hotel rates.
Hotel Negotiator for Android is available for free from the Android market. Simply launch the market on any Android device and search for "priceline."
"Following the strong response we've received from iPhone and iPod touch owners - and the money we've saved them on their hotel room bookings - we are very excited to offer this new Android app," said Brett Keller, priceline.com's Chief Marketing Officer. "Hotel Negotiator for Android is designed for travelers who are on the road, at an airport, or have arrived in a city and need a room for the night. Using their Android device, they can instantly bid on a room in the star level and location they want, or they can select a published-price room from our comprehensive inventory of top-quality hotel rooms. The best part is, they can book their hotels right up until 11:00 p.m. ET on the night they need the room."
Hotel Negotiator for Android includes the following unique features:
Winning Bids recommendations. Choose a city and Hotel Negotiator displays multiple recent winning bids made by other priceline.com customers for hotels in different parts of the city at different star levels.
Shake-Down geo-locator-triggered hotel search. Shaking the device establishes your location using location-based features and then performs a Winning Bids search for hotels in the surrounding areas.
Instant Bid Results. You'll know instantly whether your bid is accepted. If it is, you'll immediately receive all the details on your hotel and its location.
Two booking options. If you're using priceline.com's Name Your Own Price(R) hotel service, you can enter your bid using your Android. For published-price hotel rooms, you can book the room with your device or by calling Priceline's hotel booking specialists.
Hotel Negotiator for Android hotel listings can be sorted by star level, price, proximity and popularity. Hotel listings include address, star level, customer reviews and satisfaction scores, zoomable maps, pictures and descriptions.
Travelers who need help with other trip arrangements can select another option on the Hotel Negotiator for Android that takes them to a priceline.com mobile website. There, they can check flight status and browse and book airline tickets and rental cars on a published-price or Name Your Own Price(R) basis.
About The Priceline Group of Companies
The Priceline Group of Companies (PCLN) is a leader in global online hotel reservations, with approximately 61 million room nights booked in 2009. The Group is composed of four primary brands - Booking.com, priceline.com, Agoda.com and TravelJigsaw. The Priceline Group provides online travel services in 38 languages in 100 countries in Europe, North America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
Based in Amsterdam, Booking.com is a leading international online hotel reservation service operating in 92 countries in 38 languages. Booking.com offers its customers access to over 105,000 participating hotels worldwide.
In the U.S., priceline.com gives leisure travelers multiple ways to save on their airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises. In addition to getting compelling published prices, travelers can take advantage of priceline.com's famous Name Your Own Price(R) service, which can deliver the lowest prices available. Priceline.com also operates the following travel websites: Travelweb.com, Lowestfare.com, RentalCars.com and BreezeNet.com.
Singapore-based Agoda.com is an Asian online hotel reservation service that offers hotel rooms around the world and is available in 32 languages. With headquarters in Manchester, UK, TravelJigsaw is a multinational car hire service, offering its reservation services in more than 4,000 locations in 80 countries. Customer support is provided in 20 languages.
SOURCE Priceline.com
Copyright (C) 2010 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
comScore Networks is reporting that its survey of online spending shows that year to year sales increased 26% for the critical "Black Monday", the Monday after the Thanksgiving holiday. The web traffic analysis firm found that non-travel online spending rose to $485M versus $386M last year. For the entire Thanksgiving weekend (Thurs-Sun) the firm reported $925M in purchases, up from $737M last year. This year's early results by various firms shows a healthy increase in online shopping, with most shoppers making their purchases from work.
The Jersey City Medical Center is putting a gourmet twist on its hospital food. Marlena Cooper takes her time ordering lunch, after all, the menu is packed with choices like lamb chops and crab cakes. "I would like the chicken parm," Cooper requeste
Industry Health Improves 14% on Continued Revenue Growth Trends
MyBuys, the leading provider of personalization for multi-channel retailers, today released the December 2010 edition of the E-commerce Health and Wellness Index™. December was exceptional for the e-commerce industry as total revenue increased 8.3% overall on the strength of better than expected holiday online shopping sales. Revenue from full-priced item sales increased 15.6% versus the same period last year. Combined, these increases drove the index up 14.2% compared to the same month one year ago. In addition to holiday, the increase can also be attributed to a 4.8% decrease in the number of orders with promoted items and a 5.6% decline in orders without promoted items present. Revenue from promoted goods declined 10%, with the average percentage of discounting dropping 3 points to 25.7% compared to last year.
"As we start 2011, we continue to see improved comps for online retail as retailers continue to sell more utilizing merchandising to sell the right product to each consumer than being reliant upon promotion as was seen during the last two holiday seasons," said Robert Cell, CEO of MyBuys. "Retailers are healthy as a whole and are investing in technology to create future growth including mobile shopping and personalization."
Key Stats: December 2010 vs. December 2009
MyBuys E-Commerce Wellness Index
↑ 14.2%
Total revenue year-over-year
↑ 8.3%
Total revenues from products sold at list price
↑15.6%
Total revenues from products sold with a discount
↓10.0%
Depth of discounts
↓ 3%
Average Order Value for personalized transactions
↑ 8%
About the MyBuys E-commerce Wellness Index™ The MyBuys Composite Index aggregates total sales, non-promoted sales, discounted sales performance, depth of discounts, AOV and consumer impulse response from our more than 300 MyBuys clients.
FOOD RETAILERS have little festive cheer that traditionally goes with holiday sales. But last-minute shopping for the traditional Noche Buena midnight feast should give them a still decent sales growth for December, industry officials said.
SALT LAKE CITY, Dec. 20, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Overstock.com, Inc. (OSTK) has set its order cut-off times for select products with guaranteed Christmas delivery. To receive items before Christmas, customers must place orders on products identified by a holiday icon by the following cut-off dates:
2010 Holiday Order Deadlines for Delivery by Friday December 24, 2010:
Standard Ground Shipping: Monday, December 20, 2010 at 01:59 AM (EST)
2-Day Shipping: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 at 01:59 AM (EST)
Next-Day Shipping: Thursday, December 23, 2010 at Noon (EST)
The December 24, 2010 delivery guarantee is contingent upon the customer supplying Overstock.com correct delivery information.
Items with specific shipping restrictions as denoted on the product page are not guaranteed for delivery by December 24, 2010. This includes all oversized items, custom framed art, magazine subscriptions, and any other products with extended shipping time frames.
Orders shipped to Alaska, Hawaii, international destinations, P.O. boxes, and APO/FPO are not eligible for expedited shipping and are not guaranteed to arrive by December 24, 2010.
About Overstock.com
Overstock.com, Inc. is an online retailer offering brand-name merchandise at discount prices. The company offers its customers an opportunity to shop for bargains conveniently, while offering its suppliers an alternative inventory distribution channel. Overstock.com, headquartered in Salt Lake City, is a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ Global Market System and can be found online at http://www.overstock.com/. Overstock.com regularly posts information about the company and other related matters on its website under the heading "Investor Relations."
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, Dec 21, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- www.stockcall.com/offers investors comprehensive research on the catalog & mail order houses industry and has completed analytical research on Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc. (DANG) . Register with us today at www.stockcall.com/to have free access to these researches.
Despite concerns over the European debt crisis and high unemployment rates, holiday sales are stronger than expected. Holiday sales for November and December were projected to improve by 2.3% over last year but that figure has been bumped up to 3.3%. Online sales are currently projected to be up 2.2% this season. Register now at https://stockcall.com/development/stockcall/page.php?name=register.htmlto have free access to our reports on the catalog & mail order houses industry.
www.stockcall.com/is an online platform where investors doing their due-diligence on the catalog & mail order houses industry can have easy and free access to our analyst research and opinions on Amazon.com Inc. and E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc.; investors and shareholders of these companies can simply register for a complimentary membership at https://stockcall.com/development/stockcall/page.php?name=register.html.
Online retailers are capitalizing on strong sales of discounted goods. They have also extended shipping deadlines to as close to December 25th as possible. In the past, online retailers have struggled to compete with last minute in-store purchases. This year, online retailers improved warehouse efficiency to get products from the computer screen into a package faster. This improvement facilitated the extension of ordering deadlines with their shipping companies and postal services. Visit www.stockcall.com/to see how companies in this industry have grown over the past years and how they are expected to perform in the future.
Overall, it has been a strong season for online retailers even before the last minute sales push. Some online retailers are already using the extra capital for further upgrades to sites and acquisitions for 2011. The catalog and mail order index which include Amazon.com Inc. is up 16.66% in the last 5 days.
Also of interest to the industry is the recent Chinese IPO of E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc. which is proving to be a giant in the making as many in the experts in the space compares it to Amazon.com. Investors can register for free to access the research reports on Amazon.com Inc. and E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc. at www.stockcall.com/AMZN211210.pdfor www.stockcall.com/DANG211210.pdf.
Please plan to attend the 2010 Posey County 4-H Fair and support
this year’s 4-H Food Auction! Our selection of goodies will be better
than ever, and everyone, from individuals to businesses and community
organizations, is welcome!
The 4-H Food Auction will be held Monday, July 12, 2010. The auction
will start at 5:45 p.m. in the air-conditioned Posey County Community
Center on the Posey County 4-H Fairgrounds. All proceeds go to support
the educational activities of the Posey County 4-H Program, and all bids
will be welcome.
Please attend this year’s Posey County 4-H Fair and support this
worthwhile event! For more information, call the Posey County Extension
Office at 812-838-1331.
Gourmet Food Auction has now added to each listed auction two videos of how to use the specific product that is being auctioned
off.If you would like to know how to
cook the product or in some cases a review of the product then view the video before
placing a bid.
I just saw an advertisement on tv for a web site that sells game
meat,seafood etc.I didnt check out the elk etc prices but they have the
best prices I have ever seen on buffalo.
$4.25 for 1# ground buffalo
$315.00 for 50# of bison roasts,steaks and ground meat that works out to $6.30 a # and so on.
A flat rate shipping of a normal order is $8.95
I dont know how good they are and its a new site.
Check it out. www.gourmetfoodauction.com
The newest way to save cash on your grocery bill? Skip the store, and
buy everything—from hams and frozen veggies, to pies and chicken
nuggets—at a grocery auction.
The AP reports
that bargain hunters are starting to do their grocery shopping at auctions, where savvy bidders can
score serious deals on tons of produce, meat, and other foodstuffs.
These consumers do not seem deterred by the fact that many of the items
auctioned off are past their sell-by or use-by date. As one bidder said,
"The quality and taste may go down, but that doesn't mean you can't eat
it."
Would you do your grocery shopping at an auction if it meant
saving some cash?
Eliot Kamenitz/The
Times-PicayuneA "Pinot and Primi" dinner
with chef Alon Shaya and local wine developer Nicolas Bazan is Friday at
6 p.m. at Domenica, 123 Baronne St. Cost is $60, inclusive.
Reservations: 504.565.5482 or e-mail cbradley@chefjohnbesh.com.
FUND-RAISING
AUCTION FOR CO-OP: The New Orleans Food Co-op is hosting a
fundraising auction at the Big Top, 1638 Clio St., Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
The viewing of auction items (including artwork, photography and
jewelry from local artists; gift certificates; a book signed by Herman
Leonard and more) begins at 6 p.m. The $10 admission includes food and
live music. Proceeds go to the opening of the cooperative grocery.
EVERYTHING FRENCH: The French American Chamber of
Commerce, Louisiana Chapter, hosts "Everything French" Saturday, 6-9
p.m., on the third floor of The Shops at Canal Place. A French Market
will include food, sweet delicacies and adult beverages. There also will
be a silent auction, live music, informal modeling and a Jeanne d'Arc
medieval parade. Tickets are $55. For more information or reservations:
540.458.3528 or e-mail info@facc-la.com.
. . . . . . . .
NANCY WILSON AT SOFAB: Nancy Wilson of Mam Papaul's
will discuss the commercialization of Cajun/Creole food and culture and
demonstrate one of the company's famous recipes Saturday from 2 to 4
p.m. at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, Riverwalk Marketplace,
Julia Street entrance. Admission is $10.
. . . . . . . .
WINE DINNER AT DOMENICA: A "Pinot and Primi" dinner
with chef Alon Shaya and local wine developer Nicolas Bazan is Friday at
6 p.m. at Domenica, 123 Baronne St. Cost is $60, inclusive.
Reservations: 504.565.5482 or e-mail cbradley@chefjohnbesh.com.
RED BEANS ON THE RADIO: Learn everything there is to
know about the red bean this week on Louisiana Eats, Saturday at noon
on WWNO-FM (89.9 on the dial). Poppy Tooker interviews local farmer
Homer Dutch; Hayward Connelly of the bean-selling Camellia company; and
food historian/cookbook author Jessica Harris.
. . . . . . . .
VEGETARIAN WINE DINNER: Mat & Naddie's
restaurant is offering three-course vegetarian wine dinners (with vegan
and ovo-lacto options) nightly, paired with wines for $59 or $34 without
wine. More info: matandnaddies.com.
. . . . . . . .
BLUES WILL JAZZ THE VINES: Ponchartrain Vineyards
Jazz'n the Vines outdoor music concert on Saturday will feature Jeff and
Vida, with their "bluesier than blue" bluegrass, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at
81250 Louisiana 1082 in Bush. More info: www.pontchartrainvineyards.com
or 985.892.9742.
. . . . . . . .
CRAB FEST IS THIS WEEKEND: The 2010 Lacombe Crab
Fest is Saturday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 9 p.m.
at John Davis Park in Lacombe. The festival will feature lots of music,
the Hornets Honeybees, crab races, seafood and much more. Vendor Paul
Ernewein, pastor of The Village Church -- Lutheran, said his
congregation will serve fried soft-shell crabs; shrimp and catfish
po-boys; and boiled crabs and shrimp, adding that there is plenty of
seafood. "The shrimp will be coming out of Lake Pontchartrain and Texas
Gulf waters, the crabs out of Lake Pontchartrain, and the soft-shells
are tank homegrown, " he said. Admission is $3, or $5 for those arriving
after 5 p.m. Children under 10 are admitted free. More information:
www.lacombecrabfest.com.
MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) - Wayne Blair, who
owns
Blair
Auction & Appraisal, LLC , auctions just about everything.
But once a month food goes on the auction block in Muskegon. They
also have a location in Dorr.
Blair started auctioning food in 2004. He told 24 Hour News 8 it
is the best-kept secret because you can save 50 percent, sometimes
more, off the sticker price of a product.
Blair's Muskegon auction was held Thursday. Bidders came in with
boxes and coolers, scoped out the products, and then bid on the
price. Most of the goods are name brand products bought at
wholesale.
"This right here has a price unit $3.79. Typically this thing
right here will go for a buck and a half, something like that,"
said Blair.
William Lincoln and his wife are regulars who buy for their
whole family.
"We have a daughter that does daycare. We take stuff to her.
Then we have another that's laid off. We take stuff to them too,"
said Lincoln who is from Muskegon.
It's a story 24 Hour News 8 heard from a lot of people at the
auction.
"I have five kids and 11 grandchildren," said Barbara Barnes,
also from Muskegon.
She says some live with her while others visit often. They all
say the savings pay off.
"I can buy bulk and get it for at least 50 percent off," said
Barnes.
"Last month I spent $200, but usually about $150," said Sandra
Wilson of Holton.
She says she saves at least $100.
Times are tough. And when you have many mouths to feed, people
say the auction is one place where you can cut costs.
The vegetable and fruit auction in Leola Pennsylvania is filled with fresh produce that has a tremendous amount of vitality.
Just look at this food. It is alive and seems to jump out of the page to greet you!
This is Lancaster County, the best non-irrigated farmland in the world. It has a bounty of fruits and vegetables this time of year. The food is so plentiful this season that the cost goes way down because supply exceeds demand.
We bought dozens of ears of corn for just pennies the other day and took them to homeless shelters. The corn was delicious, but we certainly could never have eaten all of it. We froze a goodly amount.
But the rest went to feed the hungry.
Lancaster County is known for its corn and because we've had so much rain this season, the corn is a deep green color and stands straight up to kiss the sun.
SAINT LEONARD, MD(wypr) - It's late afternoon at the Chesapeake Auction House in St. Leonard, a small town in southern Maryland. There are about a hundred people sitting in folding chairs in a huge hall. All eyes are on Larry Forman, the auctioneer at the front of the room.
"What is this? Cocktail hot dogs! Little mini hot dogs! Ten pounds! Ten pounds! Pork and beef "
Bidding is underway on a ten-pound box of cocktail wieners. The food being sold here today all has something in common it's either on the cusp of expiring, the packaging is damaged or distributors just have too much of it in stock. Whatever the case, Larry's wife -- Kay Forman-- says people are here for deals.
"They come to buy. A lot of our auctions, they come to see what prices are. It's more meeting your friends, having a good time out. But this is a serious auction. Everybody needs to eat."
And, preferably, for less than they'd pay at the grocery store. One question that comes up all the time: What do you do with, say, 10 pounds of cocktail wieners? Michelle Ekis is here with her husband Jay. They paid ten dollars for all of those little hot dogs.
"We're going to have a party. And we're going to put them in the crock pot with barbecue sauce and people love it."
With the increase in some food prices last year and now the recession, business has been booming at food auctions. Richard Betz is the middleman here buying up the food to be sold. He's been supplying auctions in four states for the last ten years and has noticed the change.
"The places where it used to be a full house are now standing-room-only. People, when they get their gas electric bills, their health insurance bills -- they get laid off -- they look for a way to try and save a buck. And they have to eat."
Up for bid things like 15-pound boxes of bacon, 24-bottle crates of soda and huge containers of vegetable oil. Betz recently bought 20-thousand pounds of ham from a wholesaler.
"Don't tell anybody, but we're going to have hams galore." Richards: "How many?" Betz: "Probably about 500. I hate hams. Ha! It's all good. We have everything you can imagine."
The key to a deal here... knowing the price of the food you're bidding on. Doug Hendrix is buying four of his eight kids drinks at the concession stand while his wife watches the bidding. He points out that the new popularity of food auctions has a down side.
"Well, my wife was in there saying that this is a bigger crowd than normal and that the bids are getting higher than she's seen in the past, because she's saying it's because there are more people here who aren't as experienced with auctioning."
Still, Hendrix says they'll buy enough meat here to hold them for several weeks. At the last auction three months ago, they bought ten, ten-pound corn beef briskets. That's a lot of beef.
"My wife's a very good cook. So, she knows how to make it not the same every time. So, it turns out okay."
Knowing that you got the brisket for cheap doesn't hurt, either.
Tuesday’s “Nightline” reported on a trend in consumer spending that you might not have heard about: buying food at auctions.
Jim Davis, a big fan of the process of bargaining for bulk foods and groceries, takes his wife and two kids to the auction every month and says “it’s a blast . . . I’m definitely coming out with a truckload of food.”
The family already has a fully stocked freezer — recently added to the house, as well as an expanded pantry to fit all the canned goods — with 150 to 200 pounds of meat in it, but Davis says “the deals are so good you can’t help but buy it.”
Such was the case with a four pound can of beets. He doesn’t know what they’ll do with it, but he just couldn’t resist it.
Big deals, big packages
Even with such impulse buys, he estimates the family’s grocery bill is one third what it was. He says they used to go to the grocery store three or four times a week but now they just have to go for milk, eggs and bread.
“Everything else is at the auction,” he said. This is, apparently, a family that does not eat produce.
The deals at such auctions can be pretty substantial, as “Nightline” pointed out. For example, a three-pound tub of Country Crock would run you $8.73 at the store but sold for $1.50 at the auction. A pound of bacon went for $2 that might have cost $3.59 at the store.
A 64-ounce container of Tropicana orange juice that would have run $4.59 went for $1.75, and an eight-pound can of marmalade sold for $2.25; it would run $3.59 a pound at the grocery store.
How the auction works
The food typically comes from a distributor who picks up excess or incorrect orders from grocery stores and other food vendors. Sometimes cans are a little dented, but usually there’s nothing at all wrong with the food or the packaging.
The Wishing Rock auction in Maryland has gotten so big they had to move to a different location, and other auctions around the country say attendance has doubled recently.
They’re not for everyone, of course. You need to be flexible in what you want to buy, willing to bid and not too distracted by all the action around you. You also need to be able to dedicate some time to the process.
Davis says they spend about six hours at the auction when they go. The night “Nightline” went with them they bought about two month’s worth of groceries — including frozen pizza, cheesecake, meatballs and pork loin — for about $420.
While some can’t resist a good deal, others actually need them; those who run the auctions say they often see people keeping a running list of what they’ve spent who’ll back off when they realize they’ve hit their budget.
We have joined the Dealon distribution network. Starting in mid October 2010 Dealon will be offering discount coupons for the gourmetfoodauction.com site.
GourmetFoodAuction.com (www.gourmetfoodauction.com) has just launched its new web site. Some consider the site the "eBay" for food. The site offers consumers the ability to bid for gourmet food items through auctions.
Gourmetfoodauction.com has the variety of hard to find food products such as buffalo, pheasant, infused truffle oil from Italy, a variety of hot sauces, Elk and more.
Tom Souran, the President of gourmetfoodauction.com, says people are really excited in the site.
Customers who have purchased from the new site enjoy the quick delivery and have many postitive comments, including:
Elk has been a dream hunt for me, but I doubt that I will ever get to take my own. So this is a great way to taste the meat I cannot get my self!"
Great site, I have been looking for something like this for years......Cant wait to try out my burgers!"
As advertised -- Great to deal with, very helpful --Timely delivery, will continue to use this site. AAA+"
Top Notch! Super customer service, fast shipping with proper packaging.
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Bidders are willing to take some food that is past its sell-by date
Matt Rourke / AP
Runner Janet Cool displays frozen meat during the grocery auction in Dallas, Pa.
updated 3/25/2009 2:09:58 PM ET
DALLAS, Pa. — Out of toilet paper? Need to pick up a few things for dinner? Take a number and start bidding.
Many bargain hunters these days are trading supermarket aisles for the auction circuit in search of deep discounts on everything from cereal to spare ribs. Past the sell-by date? Bidders are happy to ignore that detail if they're getting a good deal.
As consumers seek relief from the recession and spiraling food prices, grocery auctions are gaining in popularity as an easy way to cut costs. The sales operate like regular auctions, but with bidders vying for dry goods and frozen foods instead of antiques and collectibles. Some auctioneers even accept food stamps.
When Kirk Williams held his first grocery auction in rural Pennsylvania last month, nearly 300 people showed up. Astonished by the turnout, he's scheduling auctions at locations throughout northeastern Pennsylvania.
"Right now, people don't have a lot of spare pocket change," said Williams, 50, operator of Col. Kirk's Auction Gallery near Bloomsburg, Pa. "They're looking to save money."
Rich Harris, 28, who was recently laid off from his welding job, showed up at Williams' auction in Dallas earlier this month looking for meat for his freezer and snacks for his kids. With his wife pregnant with their third child, "I'm basically trying to expand my dollar right now," he said. "The deals, they seem to be fairly good."
Grocery sales make sense for auctioneers, too. Sales of baseball cards, estate jewelry and other auction staples have "fallen off a cliff," Williams said. He hopes to average about $12,000 in sales per auction, which would net him a profit of about $1,000.
The popularity of the auctions — which sell leftover or damaged goods from supermarkets, distribution centers and restaurant suppliers — comes at a time when people are stretching their grocery budgets by using more coupons, buying inferior cuts of meat, and choosing store brands over national brands.
The economic downturn, paired with the worst food inflation in nearly 20 years (grocery prices spiked in 2008 before easing in January and February), has caused a "seismic shift" in consumer behavior, said Brian Todd, president of The Food Institute, an industry information service.
"Food is one area where they can save," he said.
The increased interest has fueled growth in the auctions, which can be found in at least nine states from Oklahoma to New York.
Banana Box Wholesale Grocery, a Kutztown, Pa.-based food brokerage that supplies salvage grocery stores around the nation, has seen a marked increase in calls from auctioneers getting into the food business, said manager Greg Martin.
At Steve Schleeter's grocery auction in St. Mary, Ohio — where attendance has swelled in recent months — some regulars have told him they now do most of their shopping at the auction and only go to the store for milk and lunch meat. He estimates his customers can knock 50 percent off their grocery bills.
Cherish Francik, 42, who works for the Social Security Administration, said she wouldn't have been caught dead at a grocery auction or even a discount food store a few months ago. But the tough economy has turned her into a tightwad.
Food Auctions are back in the forefront as great money savers for people having a hard time making ends meet. Located in 9 states now, they seem to be catching on as consumers scramble to provide for the needs of their families.
By reading this article carefully and following the appropriate links, you will be able to determine if food auctions are right for you. Where available, you will find links to auction sites and locations, highlighted in blue or set aside in a text box.
Please feel free to leave a comment or ask a question in the "comments" section below.
This article will be continually updated as information is received, so please feel free to save this link and visit again.
As you will see, gone are the images that come to mind when an auction is mentioned. Instead of expensive pieces of furniture or estate sales, paper products, frozen veggies and even meat products are being bid on. Fifty percent of a normal food bill can be saved by the time a bidder has won.
One wife came to an auction with her husband, daughter and TWO large coolers in tow. She put a nice sized ham in one of the coolers. Her winning bid was $12.00.
The auctions are now being held in up to 9 states, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, New York, California, and Maryland.
Auctioneers hope to clear $1,000.00 per auction. At a time when regularly auctioned items have tanked in sales, auctioneers are only happy to auction off spareribs or cheese curls in their place.
Food Auctions are back in the forefront as great money savers for people having a hard time making ends meet. Located in 9 states now, they seem to be catching on as consumers scramble to provide for the needs of their families.
By reading this article carefully and following the appropriate links, you will be able to determine if food auctions are right for you. Where available, you will find links to auction sites and locations, highlighted in blue or set aside in a text box.
Please feel free to leave a comment or ask a question in the "comments" section below.
This article will be continually updated as information is received, so please feel free to save this link and visit again.
As you will see, gone are the images that come to mind when an auction is mentioned. Instead of expensive pieces of furniture or estate sales, paper products, frozen veggies and even meat products are being bid on. Fifty percent of a normal food bill can be saved by the time a bidder has won.
One wife came to an auction with her husband, daughter and TWO large coolers in tow. She put a nice sized ham in one of the coolers. Her winning bid was $12.00.
The auctions are now being held in up to 9 states, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, New York, California, and Maryland.
Auctioneers hope to clear $1,000.00 per auction. At a time when regularly auctioned items have tanked in sales, auctioneers are only happy to auction off spareribs or cheese curls in their place.
METHODS OF PAYMENT
Cash
Credit Cards
Food Stamps
Freezer Space
If you are able to attend an auction on a regular basis, you will probably be well-advised to have an extra freezer handy, to hold all your winning treasures.
Since your spare freezer will not only hold meat, fish, ice-cream, but also veggies, bread, even milk and cheese, extra storage space can really come in handy as you bid on and hopefully WIN surplus items at your area auction.
What about quality concerns.As good as it is to find a great deal, there's really no point in buying food you don't believe is fresh enough for your family. If you are squeamish about adhering strictly to BEST USED BY DATES, then you might not be too happy with some of the selections you'll be bidding on. If you believe some food purchases are safe to keep and store, even if you are close to the SELL BY date, then auctions will be no problem.
It is true that the bigger supermarket stores wish to rid themselves of items getting close to their due dates, but that is the case with many outlet stores of major food producers and is the concept of "day old bread" from a bakery. The food is often quite good, and I've unknowingly enjoyed many bakery items that were discounted because of the time they spent on the shelf. So undo concern may not be warranted on a lot of the items sold at auction.
The FDA does not prohibit the sale of foods close to their expiration date. Primarily the dates are for the best tastiness of the food items.
BEWARE OF PROCESSED FOODS.Although you'll find them to be priced very cheaply, processed food would not be the healthiest choice for your family. Frozen meat filled with additives and preservatives cause more problems as far as obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure is concerned.
Food Auctions are back in the forefront as great money savers for people having a hard time making ends meet. Located in 9 states now, they seem to be catching on as consumers scramble to provide for the needs of their families.
By reading this article carefully and following the appropriate links, you will be able to determine if food auctions are right for you. Where available, you will find links to auction sites and locations, highlighted in blue or set aside in a text box.
Please feel free to leave a comment or ask a question in the "comments" section below.
This article will be continually updated as information is received, so please feel free to save this link and visit again.
As you will see, gone are the images that come to mind when an auction is mentioned. Instead of expensive pieces of furniture or estate sales, paper products, frozen veggies and even meat products are being bid on. Fifty percent of a normal food bill can be saved by the time a bidder has won.
One wife came to an auction with her husband, daughter and TWO large coolers in tow. She put a nice sized ham in one of the coolers. Her winning bid was $12.00.
The auctions are now being held in up to 9 states, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, New York, California, and Maryland.
Auctioneers hope to clear $1,000.00 per auction. At a time when regularly auctioned items have tanked in sales, auctioneers are only happy to auction off spareribs or cheese curls in their place.
METHODS OF PAYMENT
Cash
Credit Cards
Food Stamps
Freezer Space
If you are able to attend an auction on a regular basis, you will probably be well-advised to have an extra freezer handy, to hold all your winning treasures.
Since your spare freezer will not only hold meat, fish, ice-cream, but also veggies, bread, even milk and cheese, extra storage space can really come in handy as you bid on and hopefully WIN surplus items at your area auction.
What about quality concerns.As good as it is to find a great deal, there's really no point in buying food you don't believe is fresh enough for your family. If you are squeamish about adhering strictly to BEST USED BY DATES, then you might not be too happy with some of the selections you'll be bidding on. If you believe some food purchases are safe to keep and store, even if you are close to the SELL BY date, then auctions will be no problem.
It is true that the bigger supermarket stores wish to rid themselves of items getting close to their due dates, but that is the case with many outlet stores of major food producers and is the concept of "day old bread" from a bakery. The food is often quite good, and I've unknowingly enjoyed many bakery items that were discounted because of the time they spent on the shelf. So undo concern may not be warranted on a lot of the items sold at auction.
The FDA does not prohibit the sale of foods close to their expiration date. Primarily the dates are for the best tastiness of the food items.
BEWARE OF PROCESSED FOODS.Although you'll find them to be priced very cheaply, processed food would not be the healthiest choice for your family. Frozen meat filled with additives and preservatives cause more problems as far as obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure is concerned.
Chesapeake Auction House
Larry Forman's Auction House in St. Leonard, Maryland
The future of food auctions seems bright. Since inflation levels are at a 20 year high, it would appear food auctions will only gain in popularity. A recent food auction in Pennsylvania, a state hard hit by lay-offs, had an attendance of 300 people happy to take advantage of low prices.
Of course it is wise to know your prices! At times a bidding war can develop and the winning bid is higher than the cost you would pay in a regular grocery store. That just defeats the purpose of attending an auction, when you are looking to save money.
In Southern Maryland
Auctioneer, Larry Forman regularly auctions off food at his auction hall located in St. Leonard, Maryland. His huge hall holds about 100 people who sit on folding chairs ready to auction on various food items. Items either ready to expire, damaged packaging, or over-stocked by distributors.
Items bid on include
hot dogs
cocktail wieners
bacon
24- bottle soda crates
Huge vegetable oil containers
pork and beef
Quantities can be, shall we say extreme.
When asked what one family would do with 10 pounds of cocktail wieners. They answered, the wieners would be put in a crock pot with barbecue sauce and cooked for a party the couple was having. The winning bid was $10.00
Another husband said his family visits the auction for meat that lasts them several weeks at a time. Several months back he bought 10, ten-pound corn beef briskets, which his wife cooked up in various ways, as only a good cook can do.
Another bid was for 15, 1-pound boxexs of bacon.
The food supplier for the Chesapeake Auction House claimed that in the near future he would have 20 thousand pounds of ham available to sell.
In Bucks County, Pennyslvania
Col Kirk, recently held an auction at the Warrington Township Fire House, in Bucks County, PA. He has also had auctions in other parts of N.E. Pennsylvania, such as Wilks-Barre, New Albany and Pennsdale. They occur mostly in fire halls or social halls.
The auctions started in February and have occurred more than 30 times since then. Col. Kirk will continue holding auctions for those who need to save money by cutting down on their food bill.
The next scheduled auction will be in September, at Warwick Township.
.
More Examples of Purchased Goods
Family #1: 24-roll package of toilet paper. Winning bid: $10.00. 10-lb case of pepper bacon. Winning bid: $10.00 2-lb bag of mozzarella sticks. Winning bid: $7.00. Total spent on these items: $27.00
Family #2: Single mom of 3 sons, a nurse. Spends $500.00 every 3 weeks. Some items included, 14-lb bag of restaurant sized onion rings. Winning bid: $7.50. 12-jar case of peanut butter. Winning bid: $8.00. 2 10-lb boxes of beef hotdogs. Winning bid: $7.50 Total spent on these items: $187.00
Banana Boxes in Pennsylvania Tri-State Area
Wholesalers who have cornered the market in the Pennsylvania Tri-State area and nationwide are the Pennsylvania Amish, Mennonite, Quaker & Dutch. They are opening banana box wholesale discount salvage grocery outlet stores. They are incredibly successful.
Their stores sell
canned goods: fruit, soup, sauces
bulk products: flour, cereal, pasta
Banana boxes are just what the name implies, boxes filled with no not bananas, but food items. The Banana website lists what a typical box could contain. The bidder or consumer expects to receive some bent-and-dent items.
Banana boxes are sold in full truckloads, which would be 26 pallets per truck, 48 boxes per pallet. All together that would be 1,248 boxes. Or in smaller quantity which is worked out with the wholesaler.
They purchase from bankrupt grocers, or from chains wishing to decrease their stockpiles. Albertsons, Giant, Weis, Acme and Kroger are some of the chain stores dealing with Banana Boxes.
Whether you buy the items for your own outlet store or for your auction, places like Banana Box Wholesale are willing and able to supply your needs.
FOOD AUCTIONS - GOOD OR BAD?
The jury is still out on whether food auctions will turn out to be good things or not. Some say they are great because money is tight and every cent saved is needed for families suffering economic hardships. Others make the point that people are now bidding on food that was once sent overseas and that some of the meat products are inferior cuts. Then there is the nutritional aspect of what people are bidding on as well. No doubt time will tell whether the good outweighs the bad, until then I suspect people will make the decision of whether to go to food auctions or not, based on their economic needs.
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