Italian, family-owned and operated grocery store that stayed in business after Loblaws moved into the neighbourhood in large part due to a move towards local, organic and alternative foods. It's known for the huge garden centre that occupies the parking lot off Essex St in the summer.
The selection at FF is better than the chain grocery stores in the area but expect to pay for it. I get my Wildwood Probotic Soy drink here and it costs me dearly for wanting soy-gurt that doesn't contain milk-derived cultures. The breads and bagels are from local bakeries and are delicious but you have to get there earlier in the day or the baskets will be empty. There's been a selection of yummy but expensive vegan cookies from a bakery in London, ON.
My backyard harvest was weak this summer so I started buying romano pole beans at FF until I realized they were something crazy like $16/lb.
The building is a terribly unassuming windowless box. It looks like an old Food Basics complete with a sign where they spell out the specials of the week. They have those ugly metal bars jutting out of the sidewalk that keep you from rolling out of there with one of their shopping carts. The result is a sea of shopping carts clogging the entrance way and cars lined up for short cart to car loading distance. People also lock their bikes here which adds to the obstacle course.
A Toronto Star article a couple years ago claimed that this is where local celebrity chefs do all their shopping. If you are a foodie or like trying out recipes that call for rare spices and salts beyond the range of 'sea' and 'table', this place is for you.
The produce looks amazing on first glance but choose wisely as the turn over is not as high as at other stores so it tends to go bad quickly. You can expect that bag of organic kiwis that was on sale to be rotten within a few days. Check expiry dates before you purchase, sometimes they sell items that are not marked down and past due.
Keep an eye out for 'Deals of the Week' in bins like bags of organic sugar 2/$5.
Moral: This is no Trader Joe's for atmosphere and turn-over. Load up on mainstays at a chain store and save FF for hard to find produce, specialty and artisanal foods.