When Whole Foods reached out and asked if I’d be willing to taste and review one of their Memorial Day specials, I was pretty excited. First – I love Whole Foods. Admittedly, I don’t get over there as much as I would like to but when I do, my final total on the cash register reminds me why I don’t go out of my way. I spend too much money! I love their store. You just can’t get better than Whole Foods when it comes to fresh, quality items.

Anyhooooo… I was given the choice of their chicken kabobs or the Memorial Day Party Pack and after a brief discussion with the Rooster, we opted for the party pack. We reasoned that a burger dinner was a meal that we have pretty often in the Summer, so we felt we would have more to compare it with.

(As a side note – the kabobs were a one day special on Friday and even though I didn’t get them – let me tell you – those were some amazing looking kabobs. I swear each piece of chicken was a quarter of a breast. )

One thing that I immediately liked was their layout of the special. There are some stores that scatter their special packs all over the store.. it’s like a puzzle just to put all the pieces together. By the time you get to one section, you’ve forgotten what all was IN the pack. Not this time -the store display made it very easy to get everything that was included in the party pack which was:

• 8 Hamburger Patties (1/4 lb)
• 8 Hamburger Buns (white or wheat)
• 8 Cabot Cheddar Slices (mild, sharp or reduced fat
• 6 Sodas, 365 Everyday Value (6-pack assorted flavors)
• 2lbs Red Bliss Potato Salad

The one item that I was really anxious to try was the red bliss potato salad. I. Love. Potato Salad. But, I am VERY particular about my potato salad. Honestly, I’m surprised I didn’t break open the container before, but I resisted.

The burger patties were a nice red color and I liked how they were packaged. The Rooster was in charge of grilling them and he actually made the comment that he liked how they didn’t shrink up which is a common problem when you buy packaged patties. The cheese that was included in the pack was Cabot which I love but never buy, so definitely a little special treat for the taste buds.  The Rooster thought I was crazy when I made him smell the buns but really – I could smell a difference the bread…it smelled so fresh!

And then there was – the potato salad.  Just so you know, I made it an entire day without breaking it out but once I started making dinner, it was over. I had to try it. And oh, good googly moogly. That was some amazing stuff. Typically, in this area, it’s SO sweet and I can’t stand it. This was a perfect blend of creaminess with just the right amount of bite from the onion and green pepper. Even the 7 year old liked it. I was pretty impressed that we had any left by the time dinner was finally served. I guarantee that from now on, we will go out of our way when we want potato salad it’s that good.

The price for the party pack is $20 (normally it would run $28) and you can’t beat that.  It’s marked as a party pack for 8, but I think you would be pushing it to feed 8 adults without adding a few things. But for the flavor of the items, it would be well worth the money.

The final piece of the meal was freshly made Mango Sorbet. They make their sorbets and gelatos in house and you can tell. Only way it would be fresher is if I made it in my own kitchen and since that won’t be happening anytime soon, I’ll pick some up when I get the potato salad.

Thanks to Whole Foods Market for asking us to do a Taste Test!   The Memorial Day Party Pack is available thru May 30th so if you’re still without your grilling supplies for the holiday, head to your closest Whole Foods and get this party pack. You will love it.

Round of applause from Four Hens and a Rooster!

Kristen
@4HensAndRooster
www.FourHensAndARooster.com

** Please note that Whole Foods provided these items to me at no charge. But, if you know me.. that has no bearing on my review.**

Last updated by Kristen Daukas at 11 December, 2011.