Omnivore - Shop and compare!

Frank Bruni of The New York Times recently started a regular feature in his “Diner’s Journal” blog called “That costs WHAT?!?” His first target was a $7 cup of tea at BLT Market.

I’m sure I’m not the only one having such moments in Atlanta too. The latest was during a visit to Alon’s to buy my favorite cheese, Drunken Goat, from Spain. I didn’t even notice the price until the cheese man handed me my wrapped sliver — $20 per lb.

“Holy crap,” I said. “You’ve been charging $16 for this.”

“Well, you’ve been getting a bargain,” he said. “We finally had to go up, thanks to the economy and the Euro. It was inevitable.”

As it happens, I’d been paying even less than $16 at Whole Foods. The Ponce store has been charging $12.99. Out of curiosity, I called to find out if they’d gone up too. Hurrah! The price there is still $12.99.

That’s a $7.01 difference!