Product Review & Giveaway- Door to Door Organics!

Earlier in the month, I was excited when Door to Door Organics approached me and asked if I'd like to review one of their produce boxes on my blog. I honestly hadn't heard of the company before then and I was excited to learn more.

Essentially, Door to Door Organics is a company with a Michigan-based (looks like they have a branches in Colorado, Kansas City, Chicago, and East Coast). They are a grocery delivery service that has a core focus on organic and natural products including produce, eggs, cheeses and meats, a lot of which is locally sourced and ethically grown/made/raised.

I agreed to receive a coupon for a free box of produce in exchange for providing an un-biased review of the product I receive.

Product Review- Bitty Mix Produce Box

In order to place an order with Door to Door, I logged in and made a user account on their website, michigan.doortodoororganics.com . The website is straight-forward and easy to use for a newbie. Once you make a user name, you can set produce preference (indicate what are your favorites and what you'd never like to receive in your box) and enter in some basic information. Then you can browse & choose your Box size:

$23 Bitty- Good for 1-2 people

$33 Small- For a family of 3-4 people

$39 Medium- Produce-loving family of 4

$55 Large- For a big family or a vegetarian family

You can also choose whether you'd like the box to include just veggies, just fruits, or be Mixed, which is what I chose. 

Un-Boxing: What to Expect When you Receive your Delivery

I made the video to your left, and it will lead you through the un-boxing experience- thanks to Mike for being my video guy! 

Quality: All the produce I requested, which included lettuce, apples, bananas. oranges, pears, carrots, cucumber, tomatoes, and garlic, was labeled certified organic- it's nice to know. All of the produce looked great and did not seemed damaged by its journey to me. Several things, including the pears and the tomatoes, were a little under-ripe, but that's to be expected.

It did not seem like any of the produce was locally sourced. I was informed that local sourcing would start in June, so I'm considering ordering another box in June to see how the local sourcing is.

Quantity: All in all, I think the amount of produce I received was a fair price for $23. We all know that organic produce can be more expensive than conventionally grown produce, and I would have probably spent about this much at my local food co-op.

Delivery Satisfaction: Delivery went well- I have no complaints. I will say that I did ask for the box to be put into the cooler on my porch and it did not get put there, but that's not a big deal overall.

Customer Service Satisfaction: I had to call customer service because at first the coupon credit didn't go through the first time. I spoke to several people and they were all friendly and nice- my issue was resolved quickly!

Overall Rating and Thoughts: I was really satisfied with Door to Door Organics for the service it provides. The produce all seems to be great quality, although I've only had an apple so far :) Again, I think that $23 was a pretty good value for the amount of produce I received. The only thing I would mention as a current downfall is the lack of locally-sourced produce. As I mentioned, it does seem like they have existing partnerships with local farms, including Tantre Farm in Chelsea. Although there is more information on Door to Door's beliefs and values on their website, I am excited for a company who values organic produce and values the local community connections.

*Win a Bitty Box for yourself!*

Whoa guys- this is awesome! One lucky Reader can win a coupon for 1 free Bitty Box courtesy of Door to Door Organics. All you need to do is:

1) Like Happy Home on Facebook :)
2) Leave a comment on this post below on your favorite type of summer vegetable!

I'll give ya until 11:00pm on Wednesday, May 9th. I'll select randomly!

Also, Door to Door Organics has offered ya'll $10 off your first box, which you can do by signing up and entering the code: happyorganichome

Supporting Local Businesses while Traveling



View of the city from across the river

This week, Mike and I decided to take a little mid-winter vacation to Grand Rapids. We've spent a lot of time and effort trying to buy locally, so when traveling, we try to continue the trend.

Both of us had only spent one evening in Grand Rapids previously, and we wanted to learn about the city. Also, Grand Rapids was featured in some bad press earlier this year, being ranked as #10 in Newsweek's America's Dying Cities list. In response, the city made a video-it's pretty cute. We wanted to show our solidarity by visiting and spending some $$ there. Here are some spots we stopped, sights we saw, and where we stayed, in case you're ever traveling that way!



Kalamazoo Train Station



Travel: We chose to take the Amtrak train from Ann Arbor to Kalamazoo, and then a Indian Trails bus from Kalamazoo to Grand Rapids. If you've never taken the train or bus to a far-off locale, here's why you should try it:

•  It's fun- there are always some characters on the train/bus
• You save on gas
• You don't have to park a car for $20/night.
• One of our favorite "experiences" was just walking to each destination- that was an adventure unto itself!



Awesome hotel!

 Hotel: We stayed at the CityFlats Hotel in downtown Grand Rapids, on the east side of the Grand River. CityFlats has a LEED Gold certification, and features Michigan-made products. It was also a GREAT locaiton, close to restaurants, coffee shops, and walkable to everything! Some of the eco-friendly features include:

• Cork flooring
• Naturally hypo-allergenic bamboo linens
• Low-flow faucets and toilets
• Locally manufactured furniture and décor

Restaurants: While in GR, we made a point of eating at locally-owned restaurants, especially those featuring locally-grown produce and products. Some of our favorites were Bistro Bella Vita, Bar Divani, Founders Brewing Co., and MadCap Coffee. Bistro Bella Vita had a LOT of local produce, and all of their meat seemed to be locally-sourced and humanely-raised as well. Bar Divani featured local meats as well as local cheeses and some other products- very, very good food! Founders didn't seem to have local food, but they brew their beer right there in GR and you can eat at the Brewery.

Honorable mention: We had a several hour lay-over in Kalamazoo on our way there, and we hung out at Something's Brewing for a few hours, followed by a trip to the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange. Both were super cool: I wish we had more time in Kalamazoo! Maybe our next trip will be to stay there for a few days.



Meyer May house in Grand Rapids

 Attractions (Grand Rapids): Both of us share a similar vacation philosophy- travel lightly, walk to your destinations, and get to know the city you are visiting. Because of these values, we chose to go certain places. We saw the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Meyer May house, the Grand Rapids Public Museum, and the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. While on our commute to these places, we also stumbled upon the public library and an independantly-owned book store!  The Meyer May house was really cool- I love FLW's design principles of bringing nature indoors and complementing the house with landscaping and completing the landscape with the home. The Public Museum was pretty kid-focused, but still fun. the Gerald R Ford Museum was really interesting- I knew almost nothing about him, and now I know a lot more!



loves waitin' for the train home



 So if you're heading out to the West side of Michigan, consider visiting Grand Rapids! The downtown area was really, spotlessly clean and tidy, there were a lot of independently-owned businesses, and there was a lot to do. As I mentioned before, it was really walkable and there seemed to be a good bus system, although we didn't use it on our trip.