A Taste Of Thai Coconut Milk (Unsweetened/First Pressing - 13.5oz.)

Item Purchased: A Taste Of Thai Coconut Milk (Unsweetened/First Pressing - 13.5oz.)
Location Purchased: Jewel / 1224 S. Wabash Ave. / Chicago, IL
Price: $1.89 + tax

Review: Despite all of my aversive instincts when it comes to large supermarket chains, I shop at Jewel a lot. Mostly because it is only a block away from my apartment and open 24 hours. Well, today, one of the primary reasons for my aversion to supermarkets was shattered. I was on the hunt for coconut milk and was about to give up when I decided to ask one of the stockers if they knew where it was. The woman had no idea, but immediately asked another employee dressed in dress shirt and slacks. This man, who I assume was a manager or someone else from the higher echelons of the grocery world, swept me over to the ethnic foods in aisle two and pointed to a can of Cream of Coconut, but instead of flitting away, leaving me with any old product that had the word "coconut" in it, he immediately realized that this was not what I was looking for. With urgency, the man pulled some kind of supermarket tricorder and began typing codes into it to aid him in his search. Just then, another slacked employee passed us. In moments, I had two grown men searching for coconut milk as if it were the final scene in Wargames. Finally, we found the can of desired product squirreled away on the bottom shelf of the Asian foods section.

I have never before encountered anything more than an incoherent mumble when asking for assistance at the Jewel. This experience gave me the neighborhood grocery feel that I haven't experienced since living on the same block as Candy's Grocery. A very special thanks to the three Jewel employees who pulled my expectations of customer service out of the muck with their diligence!

The only time I have ever had coconut milk was from an actual coconut, not in a can. I'll only be cracking this can of tropical nectar to cook with tonight, so I don't know if I can say too much about the actual product. I will comment on the packaging though. Right next to the word "unsweetened," the label also says "First Pressing." First of all, I would hate to think of the coconut milk that yields from a second squishing of the hard and hairy fruit. Second, this label makes it sound as if this can of fluid is a rarity. "Dude! I have an unsweetened coconut milk, first pressing! I'm selling it on E-Bay!" Maybe this is just a result of my torrid and embarrassing history as a collector and nerd.

Rating: 3.75 / 5

Buy some ToT Coconut Milk at Amazon.com: Consume.
Image from Amazon.com