Amanda, Floral Designer

And look at her bouquet! Harmons Floral Design Center has been booming with wedding business. Our designers have been building some of the most amazing bouquets and wedding flowers since we opened in 2002. We are excited to continue bringing our creative touch to many more in the future. If you are planning a big event like a wedding, high school reunion, anniversary party, Quinceanera, and more, we can help create that extra special ambiance with beautiful and meaningful floral arrangements.

We always offer a free one-on-one consultation with a designer. A consultation is a designated time for us to show you our ideas and blend them with yours to create that exact look and feel for your special day. We are located at 3143 W. Parkway Blvd in West Valley City. We can be reached by phone at 801-957-8477 from 8am-5pm Monday-Friday and from 8am -3pm on Saturday, or send us an email. We look forward meeting you!

Dave, Gluten Free Advocate

A few days ago I had a very nice customer ask me if any of our delicatessens’ deli meats are gluten free, and frankly I am embarrassed to say that I was not sure. Obviously I am not sure is definitely not the right answer, so I did the thing I do best, research. I found out that not only are all of Boars Head® meats, cheeses, and condiments of the highest quality, they are also gluten free, we carry a large variety of Boars Head® products so please come by our delicatessen and pick some up today! For those watching your sodium, there is also a good selection of low sodium options. If you want to make a sandwich with your new found delicious deli meat, try Udi’s white sandwich bread. You can find it in the healthy living section in our frozen department.

Jonnell, Registered Dietitian

As a dietitian, I know how important it is to eat right. Eating a balanced diet with appropriate calories can reduce your risk for illness or disease, help you to achieve or maintain a healthy weight, and just make you feel better. However, I often hear that eating the recommended amount of fruits, vegetables, dairy, protein and whole grains is impossible. People often feel that they cannot meet their nutrition needs, meet their calorie goals and still enjoy favorite foods that are less nutritious. I can understand why this seems hard; a person eating 2000 calories a day should be getting at least 3 ounces of whole grains, 2 cups of fruit, 2 1/2 cups of vegetables, 3 cups of dairy foods and 5 1/2 ounces of protein foods per day. The key to meeting these requirements while staying within your calorie needs is planning. Plan each meal with the goal of meeting some of your needs for the day, and if you enjoy having a snack during the day (as I do), also use that as an opportunity to meet part of your nutrition needs. With careful planning you can also include some of the less nutritious foods that you enjoy. They key to adding less nutritious foods is portion control. If you really want a cookie (or ice cream, or candy, etc. . . .), simply plan your diet for the day to allow enough calories for your favorite food and limit it to one portion With careful planning you can meet your nutrition needs and still make room for foods you love! I have created a sample menu to show one way this can be done; notice that there are still 290 calories available for your favorite food. If you need help with meal planning either Jessica LaRoche, the dietitian at the Station Park Harmons, or I would be happy to help you. Call to set up an appointment today! Bangerter Crossing (801) 617-0111 or Station Park (801) 928-2600 Continue Reading »

Chef Bob, Executive Chef

I spend a lot of my time going through the Station Park store in Farmington shopping for groceries for either a class or special event. It always amuses me, because I wear the traditional tall hat (referred to as a toque). Whenever I pass by  small children, or even babies, I receive a prolonged stare because of my hat. Many of the young children even whisper or cry out loud to their parents, “look mommy, is that a real chef?”. Needless to say my chefs’ ego really enjoys the attention. I also find that as I wander through the store, I have many people stop me and ask me where a specific product is, or for instructions on how to prepare something, or even ask me for a specific recipe. These moments are usually one of the favorite parts of my day. I truly enjoy assisting our customers with anything culinary that may have them stumped. So please, if you have a question, don’t hesitate to stop me, or even come to my classroom to get me. I would love to help. One other thing that I might mention is that I am not the only informational resource in the store. At Station Park and Bangerter Crossing we also have registered dietitians on staff, and we have qualified people in all of our other stores to help you get the most out of the products that you buy from Harmons. We love serving you so please, don’t hesitate to ask!

Shauna, Cheese Monger

This is a very special time of year for cheese lovers. This is when a amazing cheese called Rogue River Blue is released. This raw milk blue cheese is wrapped in grape leaves that have been macerated in pear brandy and then aged for up to a year. Rogue River Blue won Best of Show this year at the American Cheese Socity annual competition. A well deserved win.

Rogue Creamery is out of Oregon and has a long history of cheese making. I had the chance to meet one of the owners, David Gremmels, in Italy a couple of years ago. What a nice guy. So passionate about his craft. Check out the history of Rogue Creamery at www.roguecreamery.com.

Supply is very limited and not every Harmons will have it. I was only able to order two wheels and they will go quick. Come on in and experience this cheese for yourself.

Jason, Artisan Baker

The Dark Rye Bread is finally here! We have been working on this one for quite awhile now! It is available every Friday. With it’s clean earthy rye flavor, it is sure to please all rye bread fanatics. Like all of our artisan breads, it is made from scratch, has no preservatives and is baked in our hearth ovens. If you are a fan of dark rye bread stop in and see us for a sample. If you don’t normally enjoy dark rye, maybe this is the one that will change your mind.

Phil, Pharmacy Manager

Our pharmacies can special order products for you and get it in the next business day.  If you can’t find the prescription, over the counter medication, vitamin, supplement, or if you need some type of medical supply product we are here to help.  Also, our computers are linked to all the Harmons in the state and can see what prescriptions our other stores have in stock for hard to find prescriptions like ones that are on backorder.

Jessica, Registered Dietitian

Food and Exercise Journaling — Can it boost your health?

Have you ever kept a personal journal of your thoughts, feelings, or activities?  If you have, why?  Some people keep journals so they have a record of the past, something to look back on to remember the good times and even the bad.  Maybe you want to remember the funny things your kids did when they were younger.  Other people journal as a therapeutic expression of their feelings—a place to let it all out.  Journaling can definitely provide a feeling of emotional wellness.  Have you ever tried or considered keeping a food or exercise journal?  It turns out this kind of journaling can really benefit your health!

Benefits of Keeping a Food or Exercise Journal

• Weight Loss—In a study by Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, participants who kept a food journal lost almost double the weight of non-journaling participants.  If you are frustrated that the scale is not tipping in the right direction despite your best efforts, just writing down everything you eat and drink can make a huge difference.  We all tend to have selective food memory—remembering all of the fruits and vegetable we ate but not all of the soda we consumed J   Keeping a food journal makes you more aware of everything you are eating and drinking. Continue Reading »

Carrie, Pet Person

With nearly 63% of American households owning a pet, an estimated 873,000 households in Utah, it makes complete sense to say that pets are part of our families. We love our pets at Harmons and we love yours just as much. Last year I had an opportunity to teach a class during our Education Week on the pet category in our stores. What is a web person doing teaching a class on pet products? I wasn’t sure why at first myself, other than everyone knows how much I love my pets. What I learned, more than sales numbers and product counts, is what a value and convenience the pet aisle is to our customers who are also pet owners. In this new blog category I hope to provide insight on some pet products Harmons carries and address interesting or important pet points.

Little Monster Loki, age 11 1/2 - Loki is an extremely active (and stubborn) Beagle/Basset mix. She loves to run like her sighthound friends, even with her crooked feet, and does not act her age. She thinks everyone loves her and (in people terms) has an energetic personality.

Other than having a great pet section in our stores, I am proud to know that Harmons gets involved in causes and events that benefit pets in our local communities. We’ve worked with the Humane Society of Utah to offer Adopt-a-thons at our stores and we were the title sponsor of this year’s Canine Casino benefiting No More Homeless Pets. Tomorrow, Saturday, September 17th we will be hosting another Pet Adopt-a-Thon at 14 of our locations. If you are looking to provide a new forever home for a loving cat or dog, visit one of our stores 12pm-6pm (St. George 12pm-4pm). Anyone who adopts a pet will also receive pet bowls and a coupon for up to $35 of Purina pet food. If you already have a pet you can take advantage of our Love Your Pet Sale going on through September 25th.

What to show off your pet? Each post I will include a photo of a pet – dog, cat, bird, fish, lizard, or whatever else is a part of your family. Send me a photo of your pet and include your name, your pet’s name and age, and tell us something special about them. I will start off the first couple with my pets.

Derick, Produce Manager

The Utah Harvest is finally upon us and has been worth the wait. The peaches are sweet and juicy the pears are fragrant and the tomatoes are perfect! We are proud to support local growers from all over the state. Now is the time to preserve the flavor of summer. We have every thing here at Harmons to can, freeze or dry the fruits of your garden or ours. Don’t miss out this, may be a condensed season. So come down and enjoy and taste the difference local makes.