Real Naked Food Brings Organic Groceries to Wicker Park
By Anthony Todd in Food on Apr 18, 2011 4:00PM
Real Naked Food, a new small organic grocery store, has just opened in Wicker Park. The store, which carries organic produce, packaged goods and cleaning products, also has a huge bulk section - perfect for the local baker who needs a few pounds of flour. The store officially opens on April 22, but it's open right now with limited stock. We visited last week and snapped a few pictures - don't worry, the shelves will be full soon.
Real Naked Food is the brainchild of Lauren Yucan, a former nurse and pharmaceutical rep who, because of her experience in the health care industry, became concerned with the chemicals and additives going into many packaged foods. She wanted to be sure to feed her child whole, organic foods, and realized that Wicker Park (how is this possible?) lacked an organic grocery store. The space, on Division, has been completely gutted and now has the feel of a comfortable, old-fashioned grocery storefront, with large bins and open horizontal produce fridges lining the walls.
The store will have a deli and a juice bar, as well as a large selection of frozen and packaged goods. Stocking local products is a priority and we spotted local sauces and ice creams amongst their limited stock. We are also assured that, once farmer's market season starts up and things get a little greener, the store will stock local, organic produce, In the back, there are huge bins for bulk organic pet food. Further back, the store's organic garden is about to get started.
"Green" values are a big part of Yucan's mission. The store will reduce it's ecological footprint by composting and recycling, and refusing to stock plastic bags. All of the store's fixtures (including aprons and name tags) are recycled, reclaimed or created by local craftsmen. They also put their money where their values are - if you bring in your own containers for bulk goods, save 25 cents for each container.
The official opening party is on April 22 (Earth Day) and will feature live cooking demos and tasty treats. RSVP to info@realnakedfood.com. Stop on by, or visit this week before the store gets crowded.
Real Naked Food is located at 1909 W. Division.