CLEMENS GOES UPSCALE WITH 'FOODSOURCE' FRESH FORMAT

ROSEANNE HARPER

BRYN MAWR, Pa. -- Clemens Markets has raised the curtain on a new, fresh format with a store here that stars "open production," an upscale repertoire of freshly prepared foods, and a dramatic presentation.

Operated as a separate division of Kulpsville, Pa.-based Clemens Markets, the store is called "foodsource by Clemens."

The small-format, stand-alone unit, which opened March 24 in this toney, high-income area, on the edge of Philadelphia, represents a distinct departure from the typical store the chain operates under its Clemens Markets banner.

With a 20,000-square-foot selling floor foodsource features a 28-foot service case that displays freshly prepared entrees such as blackened tuna steaks with mango relish, for $9.99 each, and osso bucco and Moroccan grilled chicken breasts. Sauteed spinach with garlic is $7.99 a pound.

"It's a complete new 'source' for a whole new line of food. It's not just a small Clemens Market," said Jack Clemens, president and chief executive officer of 16-unit Clemens Markets, in a statement just before the opening.

"The name is different because this type of food-shopping experience is completely different," Clemens explained.

The fresh entrees are the first to be seen upon entering the store, in a section that joins other low-profile cases to form an island with an open-production area in its center. The cases and work area are the epicenter of the store.

Customers see the long side of the rectangular island as they enter through the store's front doors. Attractive displays of prepared entrees, side-dishes and appetizers on crockery platters are immediate eye-catchers.

Specialty items, such as seven different varieties of caviar, including Russian beluga and royal beluga, also share the spotlight in the service case. Jars of caviar rest on a bed of faux ice cubes on cobalt blue plates.

On the Saturday before Easter, when SN visited this store, it was jam-packed with customers buying basketsful of top-rung items from the island of cases. The parking lot was filled with people waiting for a spot, idling in Mercedes and Jaguars.

The outside of the store looks unassuming with earth-tone colors, green awnings and copper lamps. Inside, the decor creates a feeling of warmth with wood and brick, large, opaque skylights and engaging music.

And the service staff was friendly to customers who stood two- and three-deep at the counters to buy the likes of stuffed Cornish game hens for $5.99 each, and salmon burgers for $6.99 each.

From self-service cases on the edges of the island, customers helped themselves to wrapped hunks of cheeses. The variety of cheeses included Royal Windsor, a layered cheddar and stilton that's been "bathed in elderberry wine." The retail: $6.99 a half pound. Wild, ripened, goat cheddar was $9.99 a half pound. The mix also included everyday types such as Pepperjack, with each of this type presented with a product card telling customers the cheese's characteristics and what to serve it with. For example, one card said, "Serve with beer." The card on the Pepperjack said it "melts nicely for a grilled cheese sandwich."

Cheese guru Steve Jenkins's book "The Cheese Primer" was available for sale at the case also. And a hand printed sign on an easel said, "Let Carol (presumably the store's cheese expert) help you choose the right cheese for the right occasion." An associate was sampling low-fat goat cheese the day SN visited the store.

Just across the aisle from the island, in the seafood-service case, cooked crawfish could be ordered for $4.99 a pound, as well as de-veined, cooked shrimp for $15.99 a pound. A large variety of ready-to-cook seafood items also shared that case.

The rectangular island of cases, at its far end, offered signature sandwiches, merchandised alongside baskets of apples and oranges, and single-serving salads in a multi-tiered, self-service area. "We're bringing a massive variety of unique quality food together that normally they (consumers) may have to drive to a dozen different locations for," said Clemens in his statement.

A patisserie featuring elegant-looking pastries, and Le Bus artisan breads, stands adjacent to an espresso coffee bar. Le Bus is a locally renowned bakery brand that Clemens first introduced at a remodeled store in Springhouse, Pa., north of Philadelphia.

The Springhouse store, which had its grand re-opening in mid-December, launched several of the design elements that are featured at the foodsource store here. The rectangular island of display cases with open production in its center was introduced there, for example.

As customers enter the Springhouse store, they first see a salad bar sitting parallel to the front of the store with a large sign above it that reads, "The Cafe at Clemens." After that the long, rectangular island of display cases with an open work area can be seen.

The Springhouse remodel is a departure from the previous generation of Clemens Markets in that its food-service elements, and prepared foods, are clustered in an area that comprises one-third of the store, something not seen at Clemens before.

At both stores, however, the theater of on-site preparation is a notable feature.

At foodsource, the specialty items offered are higher-end than that at Springhouse. For example, pates and terrines at foodsource occupy at least 5 feet of case. The prices: $6.49 a half pound.

The foodsource which sports its own earth-tone colors and logo, also does not include as many elements of a traditional supermarket as the Springhouse location does.

Instead, more space is given over to displays of specialty products such as Godiva and Laderach chocolates. A small box, either brand, with four pieces, is $7.

Half of a 12-foot, three-shelf service case is devoted to boxed, high-end chocolates at foodsource. The other six feet is dedicated to loose chocolates. Those cases enclose a squarish island at the front left corner of the store which houses an espresso coffee bar.

One set of cases enclosing the coffee bar island are LeBus bread display cases. They're wooden cases with glass doors. The "LeBus" brand is etched into the wood.

Those cases face a floor-to-ceiling window that looks out onto a sidewalk. A pastry case faces another floor-to-ceiling window that faces out into the parking lot. Such items as pecan triangles that look like tiny pieces of pecan pie, for $1.50, each are shown there. So are cheese cakes, opera cakes, and other attractive pastries.

In that area, eight high-backed stools are set at a counter against the window. The seating appeared to primarily serve the coffee and pastry crowd. The fare sold elsewhere in the store is geared to the take-out customer.

Other service and self-service features in the center-of-the-store island include an attractive olive bar with eight varieties of olives. Tapanade, roasted peppers and artichokes are offered there retailing for $5.99 a pound.

Other upscale touches include aged beef hung in a walk-in aging room with a wood facade at the back of the store. Customers can look in through a large window. Also, a sushi bar operated by Keystone Fresh Concepts, Blue Bell, Pa., occupies a six-foot section of the island. Dietz & Watson sliced-to-order deli meats are sold at the service counter, as well as lobster and shrimp pate at $7.99 a half pound.

Displays of fresh pasta, at $3.99 a pound, occupy six feet of space at the service counter, along with a variety of "fresh-made" sauces in 8-ounce containers for $3.99 each.

Customers can help themselves to variety of panini sandwiches at $5.99 each, or as indicated by a sign overhead, an associate will grill the sandwiches upon request. A menu of signature sandwiches, with names like "The Villanova," the "Mad Anthony" and the "South Philly" were also avaiable to customers via self-service. Regional favorites are offered both self-service and at the service counter that include sweet noodle pudding, Amish-style lima beans and pepper hash.